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Afghanistan: As Iran-Taliban tensions rise, Afghan migrants in tinderbox
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KABUL, 03 May 2022, (TON): As Afghanistan plunged into economic crisis after the United States withdrew troops and the Taliban seized power, the 960-kilometer (572-mile) long border with Iran became a lifeline for Afghans who piled into smugglers’ pickups in desperate search of money and work.
But in recent weeks the desert crossing, long a dangerous corner of the world, has become a growing source of tension as an estimated 5,000 Afghans traverse it each day and the neighbours, erstwhile enemies that trade fuel, share water and have a tortured history , navigate an increasingly charged relationship.
In past weeks, skirmishes erupted between Taliban and Iranian border guards. Afghans in three cities rallied against Iran.
Demonstrators hurled stones and set fires outside an Iranian Consulate. A fatal stabbing spree, allegedly by an Afghan migrant, at Iran’s holiest shrine sent shockwaves through the country.
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