The colors of the Afghan flag were projected on one of the Iranian capital's best-known landmarks on November 5 in a gesture of solidarity with Afghanistan following the deadly November 2 attack on Kabul University that left at least 22 people dead and dozens injured.
A deputy mayor of the capital said the projection of the flag on Tehran's Azadi Tower was “a sign of solidarity and sympathy” with Afghans.
“Although the terrorists took the lives of the youth of Afghanistan, the alliance between #Tehran and #Kabul is a clear answer to those who think they can intimidate us,” Deputy Mayor of Tehran for Social and Cultural Affairs Mohammad Reza Javadi Yeganeh wrote on Twitter, where he posted a video of the illuminated tower.
The video projection also depicted photos of the victims and messages of sympathy with the Afghan nation, domestic media reported. Afghanistan’s Ambassdor to Tehran Abdolghafor Lival attended the event, reports said.
Earlier in the week, Tehran's municipality had also unveiled billboards in memory of the 22 students and teachers killed in the attack on the campus of Afghanistan’s largest university. The extremist group Islamic State (IS) took responsibility for the attack.
Over the past several days, many Iranians have taken to social media to mourn the victims of the attack at Kabul University’s Policy and Public Administration School and condemn violence against Afghan civilians.
Iranian media reported that vigils were held outside Afghanistan’s embassy as well as at the University of Tehran.
Iran’s Foreign Ministry condemned the attack earlier this week and said Tehran “stands by the people and government of Afghanistan in the comprehensive fight against terrorism and extremism.”
About 3 million documented and undocumented Afghans live in Iran, where many of them have faced discrimination and mistreatment, according to rights groups.
Violence has continued in Afghanistan even as the Taliban and a government-appointed negotiation team hold talks in Qatar to end more than four decades of war in the country.