Taliban dismiss Iranian allegations of IS leaders relocating to Afghanistan

Kabul: The interim Afghan government in Kabul has dismissed allegations from Iran regarding the purported relocation of ISIS leaders to Afghanistan, according to a report from the Bakhtar News Agency.

Iranian authorities had previously suggested that key figures from ISIS were being moved to Afghanistan, raising concerns over the potential for escalating violence in the region. However, the Taliban have refuted these claims.

Afghan Taliban spokesman, Qahar Balkhi, dismissed the allegations as “baseless” and “without proof”, while adding that “the emirate has a clear policy of not allowing anyone to use Afghanistan’s land against any country.”

The Iran-Afghanistan border, a long and often volatile stretch, has been a source of conflict between the two countries with the recent allegations adding to the volatility.

Iran has been fighting a protracted battle against ISIS on its own soil and has oft blamed Afghanistan for allowing its soil to be used for cross border terrorism.