Iran fears growing dangers of ISIS Khorasan

Mohamed Yosry

A new crisis between Iran and the Taliban movement has erupted due to the growing dangers of ISIS Khorasan, which increased after the Taliban took control of Afghanistan in August 2021, as the borders between the two countries reach more than 900 kilometers. This comes amid security disturbances in many of the border areas in Iran and the possibility of ISIS exploiting these disturbances with its safe incubator in Afghanistan due the Taliban government, which does not have a firm position on the terrorist organization and its internal influences on neighboring countries.

Iranian objection

In statements to state television, Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian expressed his country’s anger at the growing threats of the terrorist organization on the Iranian borders.

Amir-Abdollahian said that the biggest dilemma currently facing Afghanistan is the spread of terrorism, adding that it is no secret that ISIS leaders and experienced members have been transferred to Afghanistan from Iraq, Syria and parts of Libya in recent months, which is one of the challenges facing the Taliban government in Afghanistan.

“We have clearly announced to the Afghan authorities, and I have clearly informed acting Foreign Minister Mulla Muttaqi that no group in Afghanistan has been able to manage a stable political system without the participation of other ethnic groups, so the formation of an inclusive government with the participation of all is a necessity and should not be postponed,” he continued.

Taliban objection

Those statements by Iran’s foreign minister sparked a state of objection among the Taliban leaders in light of the great differences between the two countries, which amounted to armed clashes between them due to the conflict over water.

Abdul Qahar Balkhi, spokesman for the Afghan Foreign Ministry, tweeted on Saturday, July 22, “If Iran has any intelligence that ISIS members have been transferred to Afghanistan, we hope they share it so that the Afghan security forces can take the necessary steps,” adding that the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan fought meticulously against ISIS during and after the end of the occupation.

Balkhi called on the Iranian authorities to take a constructive stance on economic, political and social issues.

He added that the Taliban government will not allow anyone to threaten the security of the country or use Afghan territory against others.

Hesitant attitude

Since the arrival of the Taliban to power, it has been deliberately ignoring the influence of ISIS. At times it refuses to acknowledge the existence of the terrorist organization’s strong influence on Afghan soil, and at other times it hints at the danger of the organization on Afghan security and the ability of the Taliban government to interact with the organization.

The differences in the Taliban’s positions towards the terrorist organization are due to two reasons:

First: When the movement is faced with the dangers of the organization on internal security and on neighboring countries, it resorts to refusing to acknowledge the existence of the organization’s influence on Afghan soil so that it is not accused of providing its members with a safe haven, which is a naive justification if compared to the organization’s operations on the ground, which are frequently target Taliban members, active leaders, and senior officials, including the killing of the governor of Balkh two months ago, in addition to the targeting of soldiers and ministers from the movement.

Second: The movement maintains the file of ISIS dangers as one of the justifications for the important files with which it pressures the international community in order to obtain international recognition. When the movement finds that things are not going in the direction of recognizing its government as representative of the Afghan people, it puts the scarecrow of ISIS in front of everyone in order to deal with it as a recognized government so that it can form an army or conclude military deals with abroad that will enable it to obtain whatever weapons it wants.

This hesitation raises the fears of neighboring countries about the growing dangers of ISIS Khorasan due to the Taliban’s lack of decisive recognition of those dangers, thus allowing the organization to wreak havoc in Afghanistan in the near future and transform it from a mere province into a center for its administration instead of Syria and Iraq.