Word: afghan
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Dates: during 1990-1999
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...Competing for the "most holy Islamic nation prize," Iran has criticized the Taliban's harsh policies, accusing them of giving Islam a bad name. This hurt the Taliban's feelings, and in response they killed eight Iranian diplomats. Not to be outdone, Iran massed 270,000 troops on the Afghan border and last Thursday commenced three hours of fighting...
Iran claims its army whupped the Taliban in a firefight Thursday; the Afghan militia denies the incident even occurred. But the reported clash may be part of a strategy by Iranian hard-liners to undermine their moderate president. "This clash is part of a struggle for dominance in the Islamic world," says TIME correspondent Johanna McGeary. Shiite Iran wants the Sunni Taliban to hand over members who murdered eight Iranian diplomats earlier this year. It also accuses the Taliban of killing Shiite civilians inside Afghanistan, and has massed 200,000 troops on the border to underscore...
...journalist holed up in the Iranian consulate were massacred by the invaders. Iranian officials were equally upset by the defeat and reported slaughter of the city's Shi'ites. Tehran vowed revenge and announced last week that it was dispatching 200,000 troops for "maneuvers" on the Afghan border...
Another crucial factor is Iran's fear of being outflanked in the region's complex geopolitics. Iran, backer of the Afghan government ousted two years ago, and Pakistan, which supports the Taliban, have been vying for influence in Afghanistan ever since Soviet troops withdrew in 1989. Pakistan's newly declared nuclear capability has only intensified Tehran's anxiety. Complicating things further is the internal power struggle between Khamenei's hard-liners and emerging moderates led by President Mohammed Khatami...
...Afghan experts in the region say Iran has three military options: launching a punitive air strike; giving solid backup to 4,000 anti-Taliban rebels who have regrouped near the border; or going for an all-out offensive against the Taliban forces in a drive to besieged Shi'ite areas 400 miles away. History has never been kind to those who invade Afghanistan, however. U.S. intelligence officials strongly doubt that Iran can mobilize 200,000 troops for the promised maneuvers, and few in the country have the heart for another...