Ghani tasks team to probe drowning of Afghan migrants

KABUL (Tolo News): Afghanistan’s President Ashraf Ghani has tasked a 10-member team to probe reports of the drowning of dozens of Afghan migrants by Iranian border security forces earlier this week.

Mohammad Hamid Tahmasbi will lead the probe team, said Sediq Sediqqi, a spokesman to Afghan president Ashraf Ghani. Over 50 Afghan migrants attempting to cross the border with Iran were “tortured and drowned” by Iranian guards, according to eyewitnesses. An Afghan official said that so far 16 of the Afghan nationals have been rescued, 18 to 20 are missing, and 16 bodies have been found.

The reports sparked strong condemnation in Afghanistan and abroad. The US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said that he is “appalled” by reports that say Afghan migrants were “abused, tortured and drowned” by Iranian border guards. His comments come a day after the Afghan government announced that a joint Afghanistan-Iran team would probe the incident.

Acting Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mohammad Haneef Atmar, said he had a “tense interaction” with Iranians over this matter. But later in the day, the Foreign Affairs Ministry said the Iranian government had agreed to a joint probe into the incident. The Iranian Foreign Affairs Ministry rejected Pompeo’s remarks, saying some people are trying to disrupt Kabul-Tehran ties by making conspiracies.

“We extend our condolences to their families but we should remember that some are seeking to damage the (Kabul-Tehran) relations and the current situation in the region or between the Islamic Republic of Iran and the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan,” said Sayed Abbas Musavi, a spokesman for Iran’s Foreign Affairs Ministry.

Meanwhile, Afghan President Ashraf Ghani and rival Abdullah Abdullah are close to resolving a standoff over last year’s disputed presidential election that has launched the country’s politics to pandemonium. Sources privy to ongoing negotiations between the Afghan leaders allude to the finalization of the talks to end the leadership feud and that an official deal will be brokered soon.

The mechanics of the negotiations are believed to fall in the sphere of government power sharing in ministries, independent institutions, governorships, and embassies. Another source has said the leaders are bargaining over key ministries of foreign affairs and finance, and the attorney general office. The negotiating teams were very recently said to have agreed upon Abdullah’s plan in principle and talks continue in detail – regarding technicalities of how to share power between the two leaders. A draft deal had been finalised that included proposals that Abdullah lead a high council for peace talks and have a half-share in government appointments.

Second Vice President Sarwar Danish has pledged, in his meetings with UN and EU envoys, that the political rift was inching toward an end and that Abdullah Abdullah had accepted to lead the supreme council for peace talks. The dispute – which had culminated in both the leaders declaring themselves president back in March – has long sparked fears in the United States and other allies that the split was undermining momentum in peace talks with Taliban insurgents.

Both sides have been under international pressure to end the rift and strike a deal. US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo flew to Afghanistan in March for a one-day visit to try to broker an arrangement even as most travel was halted due to the coronavirus pandemic. Pompeo had announced a $1 billion reduction in aid and threatened to slash the same amount next year to try to force Abdullah and Ghani to end their feud.