Taliban takes over Afghan embassy in Iran capital Tehran

Afghanistan's ruling Taliban said Sunday that it appointed new diplomatic staff for the Afghan embassy in the Iranian capital Tehran, after the ambassador and his team quit their roles.

The embassy had up until recent days been staffed by diplomats appointed by the US-backed government ousted from power by the Taliban in August 2021, but ambassador Abdul Qayyum Soleimani and his team reportedly decided to leave their posts because the hardline group took control of the embassy.

Taliban spokesperson Abdul Qahar Balkhi said Sunday that the foreign ministry "informs all Afghans residing in Iran that the Afghan Embassy activities will continue in Tehran following the dispatching of newly appointed Charge d'Affaires and diplomats".

Soleimani had reportedly told local media that he and his staff had decided to leave their posts after the Taliban took control of the embassy.

Iran said it had not handed the embassy over to the Taliban, and that control of the diplomatic office was instead an "internal matter".

Afghan opposition groups condemned Iran for 'allowing' the Taliban to take control of the embassy, warning that the move would put Afghans who had sought sanctuary in Iran from the hardline group in danger.

Iran is home to some four million Afghans, around a million of whom moved to the country during the Taliban's takeover of Afghanistan in 2021, Soleimani said last year.

Fazel Ahmed Haqqani was appointed as charge d'affaires to replace Soleimani, the Taliban said.