Telegraph: Iran Seeks Taliban List of Ex-UK Afghan Allies
The British newspaper The Telegraph has reported that Iran is attempting to obtain a list of Afghan nationals who formerly worked with British military forces, allegedly to use this information as a tool of political pressure against the United Kingdom.
According to the report, senior officials from Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) have approached the Taliban leadership, requesting access to a list of around 25,000 Afghans who collaborated with UK forces during the two-decade war in Afghanistan. The primary aim, as cited by the newspaper, is to identify individuals who may have worked with British intelligence agencies, particularly MI6.
The Telegraph further states that a special committee has been formed in Tehran to secure and analyze the list. Some of the individuals named reportedly fled to Iran after a data leak in 2022 exposed their identities. Iranian officials are allegedly seeking to detain certain individuals now residing in Iran, with the intention of using them as leverage in diplomatic negotiations with the UK and its allies.
The report also notes that the IRGC recently arrested one Afghan national and handed him over to the Taliban in Kabul. This move is being interpreted as a possible sign of emerging intelligence cooperation between Tehran and the Taliban. Additionally, the Taliban leadership, now concentrated in Kandahar, has reportedly ordered the identification and detention of individuals from the list to further serve Iran’s strategic interests.
Since the 2022 data breach, at least 200 former Afghan soldiers with ties to the UK have reportedly been killed by the Taliban, though these figures have not been independently verified.
The report surfaces amid renewed Western warnings to Iran over its nuclear commitments. The UK, France, and Germany have all signaled that violations could trigger the reactivation of sanctions under the so-called snapback mechanism. In this context, The Telegraph suggests Iran may now be leveraging Afghan refugees and former UK collaborators as a means of applying pressure on London.
Taliban officials declined to comment when contacted about the report.
