Iran and Afghanistan exchanged gunfire on May 27 amid rising tensions over water supplies in the region. The countries are engaged in a decades-long dispute over rights to the Helmand River, on which Iran depends to irrigate land in its arid south. The construction of dams on the Afghan side has intensified the situation in recent years.
Iranian and Afghan Taliban forces clashed on the border two weeks ago, resulting in two deaths and several wounded as tensions surrounding water rights continue to rise between Tehran and Kabul.
