Hundreds take to streets against Iran

HERAT CITY (PAN): Hundreds of angry residents blocked Herat City-Islam Qala highway in the western province of Herat on Thursday morning, officials said.

Nearly 500 people of Kohsan and Ghoryan districts staged a demonstration in the Ahmadabad village, 20 km off the Islam Qala dry port, at around 10am against the execution of Afghans in Iran.

One of the protesters, Mir Khan, told Pajhwok Afghan News: “My brother and nephew were among the 13 people of my village who were shot dead a few months back by Iranian guards.”

Their bodies were yet to be handed to relatives, the protestor said, complaining that the Afghan government and the international community had done nothing to resolve the problem.

They had complained more than 20 times to local officials about the unwarranted delay in the transfer of bodies, according to Khan, who deplored the issue remained unresolved.

Provincial police spokesman, Col. Noor Khan Nekzad, said they had taken preemptive measures to prevent the demonstration turning violent.

Last week, about 20 bodies of the Afghans executed in Iran were brought to Takhar province. President Hamid Karzai on Monday tasked to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to discuss the issue with Iranian officials.

myn/mud

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