'Afghans fighting in 3rd country committing crime'

By Sayed Khodaberdi Sadat

KABUL, Afghanistan

President Ashraf Ghani has warned citizens against fighting in a third country, a thinly-veiled reference to Syria.

In a Wednesday meeting at the presidential palace, he said: “Afghan citizens fighting in a third country are committing a crime.”

He was referring to the alleged recruitment of Afghan men by Iranian forces to fight in war-wracked Syria.

According to a 2016 report by the Human Rights Watch, Afghan citizens who set off for Europe are stopped by Revolutionary Guards in Iran -- their first stop before crossing over to Turkey.

The guards select the most physically fit men to fight for the Fatemiyoun Brigade in Syria, the report said, offering them financial incentive and legal residence in Iran in return of protecting sacred Shia sites in the war-torn country.

Iran has long-backed the Bashar al-Assad regime and has deployed forces to fight against opposition groups in Syria.

Syria has been locked in a vicious civil war since early 2011 when the Assad regime cracked down on protesters with unexpected ferocity.

Since then, hundreds of thousands of people are believed to have been killed and millions more displaced by the conflict.