Taliban release Iranian journalist to embassy in Afghanistan

An Iranian journalist who was detained in Afghanistan has reportedly been released to the Iranian embassy in Kabul. The Tasnim News journalist was detained last week when he was trying to leave Afghanistan.

He had been in the country for two weeks and was there legally. The detention threatened to lead to a crisis between Iran and the Taliban. 

Tasnim News, where the journalist worked, said on Saturday that “last night, the Taliban handed over the photographer of the Tasnim news agency, Mohammad Hossein Velayati, to the Iranian embassy in Kabul.” He had been detained for a week.

Why did the Taliban arrest an Iranian journalist?

It was not clear why the Taliban detained the journalist, though the Taliban have cracked down on media since they took over the country two years ago. They have also been increasingly brutal in their treatment of protesters, women and minorities.

Iran’s regime tends to have difficult relations with the Taliban because the Taliban have historically suppressed Shi’ites in Afghanistan. However, Iran also opposed the US presence in Afghanistan and had quietly backed the Taliban against the US.

Since the US left in 2021, the Iranian regime and the Taliban regime have been at odds over water policy and other issues. Tasnim News is considered pro-regime and close to the IRGC, therefore detaining a Tasnim journalist is also a potential attack on Iran itself.  

The reports say that the Tasnim journalist, who is a photographer has still not been able to leave Afghanistan. He is apparently at the Iranian embassy in Kabul.