Afghans halt river flow to Iran

Afghanistan has halted the flow of the Hirmand (Helmand) River into Iran, according to a 6 November report in "Iran," the official Islamic Republic News Agency daily. The river's water resumed flowing to Iran on 25 October, but even then there were official complaints about inadequate supplies (see "RFE/RL Iran Report," 4 November 2002). "Iran," as cited by IRNA, reported that Kabul agreed to release 1,000 hours of water flow, but turned off the tap after just 240 hours. An "informed source" from Iran's drought-stricken Sistan va Baluchistan Province, into which the waters would flow, explained that the water cutoff was connected with the autumn harvest season in Afghanistan's Helmand and Nimruz provinces, and the source speculated that the flow might resume in two months. A 1973 Tehran-Kabul agreement establishes how much Hirmand River water should reach Iran. BS