On the occasion of World Refugee Day, a senior U.S. official stated that he was “horrified by accounts of Afghan migrants and refugees being drowned, shot and burned alive by Iranian border guards and Iranian police”. “Those responsible must be held accountable”, he added. Iran’s Foreign Ministry subsequently responded: “no ill-intended foreign provocation can undermine this close relation [between Iran and Afghanistan]. For decades, Iran has hosted millions of Afghan refugees who have fled the war and clashes that were ignited by U.S. meddling and invasion. We’ll continue to support our Afghan brothers and sisters during their hardships, and again we call on the U.S. to end its destabilising presence in our region”.