Former Afghan prime minister and chief of Hizb-e-Islami Afghanistan (HIA), Gulbuddin Hekmatyar, said Iran’s role in his country “has always been negative.” Tehran “has always preferred the continuation of the war in Afghanistan… Iran has invested for at least 30 years (on war),” he told Pakistan’s Geo TV.
“Iran is a party to the war in Afghanistan and supports different groups… Most of the weapons came from Iran after the withdrawal of the former Soviet Union (from Afghanistan),” he said, adding that Tehran is providing weapons to the Taliban.
Hekmatyar made the remarks during a press conference in Khost province a day after he delivered a speech among his supporters during a large gathering. He also criticized the Afghan officials for publicly supporting the Syrian regime and recruitment of the Afghan youths by Iran to fight in Syria.
According to Hekmatyar, certain people exist in the unity government who are supporting the Syrian regime and deployment of the Afghans to fight in favor of the regime. Amid reports that a number of the Islamic State militants have moved to Afghanistan from Iraq and Syria, Hekmatyar said the militants may have shifted to Afghanistan via the Iranian soil.
The latest remarks by Hekmatyar accusing certain government officials for the support to the Syrian regime come as the deputy chief executive Haji Mohammad was spotted in a gathering of the Fatemiyoun brigade operating under the Iranian Revolutionary Guard to fight in Syria, a move which has further sparked concerns among the people regarding the fate of the Afghan youths who die and those returning to the country from the Syrian conflict.
Mohaqiq reportedly attended the gathering in Tehran to praise the youths and Fatemiyoun brigade for the turning the conflict in Syria into the favor of the regime in power led by Bashar Al-Assad. He reportedly hailed the leader of Hezb-e-Ullah Hasan Nasrullha and the commander of the Fatemiyoun brigade for their recent victory in the war.
Hekmatyar also called the government a ‘corporation company’, saying the people who fought him in the past, were in the high positions of the government. Hekamtyar has been frequently criticized for his harming remarks, but is still continuing such statements.
He accused Iran of interfering in the Afghan affairs, saying Tehran wanted to play the role against Daesh terrorist group in Afghanistan as it did in Iraq and Syria. Hekmatyar said the ongoing war in Afghanistan was favoring Iran, adding that Pakistan has lost much due to the crisis in Afghanistan.
Hekmatyar pointed that many countries think their national interests are served by the continuation of the war, adding that other countries should not bring their rivalries to Afghanistan.
“Unfortunately some neighbors don’t want an end to the war… so there’s instability, differences among Afghan leaders and a weak government. They’ve been spending on this war for 30 to 40 years. Pakistan is the only country badly affected by the Afghan war. Pakistan… suffered the most. This war paved the way for the creation of groups that took up arms against Pakistan,” Hekmatyar said.
“The U.S. has not only spent billions of dollars, but thousands of their personnel have been killed and injured. I don’t understand what the U.S. wants to achieve from this war,” Hekmatyar said, adding that the U.S. has achieved nothing from the war.