in the western province of Herat, allegedly 57 Afghan nationals who tried to enter Iran for work were arrested by the Iranian border security forces who tortured the Afghans and threw some of them into a river–in which some died–according to an Afghan claiming to be a victim and also family members of alleged victims. The incident is said to have occurred on Wednesday.
Officials at Herat district hospital confirmed that some of the dead bodies of the presumed victims were transferred to their hospital.
The Iranian consulate general in Herat has denied any involvement of Iranian guards in the incident.
Acting Foreign Minister Hanif Atmar has appointed a delegation to fully investigate the incident, in order to make the necessary decisions “in light of the facts”, said the Afghan Foreign Ministry in a statement.
The victims were reportedly arrested in Zulfiqar Valley on the border between Iran and Afghanistan. Many Afghan youth flock to Iran in search of work.
“We were taken to a camp, then we were driven in a minibus at 1:00 AM towards the river. They did not release us in a residential area, but instead took us to the river and threw us in,” said Shah Wali, who claimed to be among the victims.
“My brother left for Iran three days ago. Later on I heard that they were drowned in the river. The Iranians have drowned them, one of them was my brother and another was my cousin,” said Ghulam Yahya, the brother of one alleged victim.
“This is one of thousands of incidents– the government did not help the people even one single time,” said Mohammad Jan, the relative of a victim.
According to eyewitnesses, out of the total of 57 people who were thrown into the river, 23 of them are still missing.
“Based on the report–from the police and the people of the area–the number of casualties are high. It might be more than 10 people. Police are at the scene to recover those drowned,” said Mohammad Arif Jailani, the head of Herat’s district hospital.
“We consulted them through our foreign relations department and asked for clarification. They (Iran) pledged to investigate the case and said they will inform us as soon as possible,” said Monisa Hassanzada, the deputy governor of Herat.
“We request the neighboring country Iran to have mercy on those going there because of poverty and do not fire at them,” said Mohammad Sardar Bahaduri, member of Herat provincial council.
