Iran terms US ouster from Afghanistan ‘humiliating’

TEHRAN, Iran

Iran's top security official has termed the departure of US forces from Afghanistan as "humiliating", days after the Taliban took over the neighboring country.

"The end of any occupation is a humiliating dismissal," Ali Shamkhani, who heads the Supreme National Security Council of Iran, said on Wednesday.

"The fate that befell the United States in Vietnam, Iraq and Afghanistan is also the inevitable fate of the occupying Zionist regime (Israel)," he added.

His remarks came days after the Taliban militant group captured the capital Kabul, taking Afghanistan’s reins for the first time in almost 20 years.

On Monday, Afghan Defense Minister Bismillah Mohammadi said his "hands were tied" while the "nation was sold", hours after the Taliban laid siege to Kabul and President Ashraf Ghani fled the country.

Shamkhani termed Mohammadi's angry remarks the "result of 20 years of US occupation".

Many Iranian officials have reacted to the dramatic turn of events in Afghanistan.

Senior lawmaker and former Iranian ambassador to Kabul, Fada Hossein Maleki, said Ghani's mission was to "hand over the country to Taliban".

On Monday, Iran's newly-elected President Ebrahim Raeisi said the transfer of power in Kabul presents an "opportunity" to "restore life, security, and lasting peace" in the country.
He also instructed Shamkhani and outgoing Foreign Minister Javad Zarif to "closely monitor developments" in the neighboring country.

Pertinently, Iran has maintained close contacts with the Taliban in recent years and has welcomed efforts towards the transfer of power in Afghanistan.