Twelve Iranians apparently seeking to secure the allegiance of commanders in western Afghanistan have been seized by Afghans and handed over to American military officials. An American military official confirmed that "around 12" people believed to be Iranians were being held and interviewed at the Kandahar Airport. The Iranian government has made no public statement about those apparently detained after being captured this week in Shindand, in Farah Province. One of the men was a high-ranking general with close ties to the country's supreme religious leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. The captives were turned over to the Americans, who took them to the airfield. Officials in Washington said they had no comment on the men taken captive, but some government officials suggested they may be ethnic Hazaras rather than Iranian nationals.
Seems like a pretty clumsy operation. Is that egg on the Ayatollah's face? |