Iran's Foreign Ministry summoned a top Afghan Embassy official to protest violence against Iranian diplomatic posts that were targeted by protesters angered over social media videos.
State media reported on April 12 that Afghanistan’s charge d'affaires in Tehran was called in connection with violence a day earlier that targeted the Iranian Embassy in Kabul and the Iranian Consulate in Herat.
Protesters pelted the Herat consulate with stones and appeared to set fire to part of it. A similar demonstration took place in the Afghan capital.
The protests were sparked by unconfirmed videos that circulated on social media networks, allegedly showing Afghan refugees being beaten by Iranian border guards.
One video seemed to show Iranian border guards beating Afghan refugees; another appeared to show a group of Iranians dragging and beating refugees in some sort of compound.
The Iranian Embassy in Kabul said the videos were "baseless and invalid" and were aimed at harming bilateral relations.
Iran has struggled to cope with an influx of Afghans who have fled since the Taliban seized power in Afghanistan last August.
More than 5 million Afghans have reportedly fled to Iran.
The two countries share a 900-kilometer border. Tehran has not recognized the Taliban’s claim to be Afghanistan’s rulers.
