ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Iranian police said one armed attacker was killed and several others wounded after an explosion and gunfire targeted police units in the southeastern province of Sistan-Baluchestan on Wednesday evening, the latest in a series of attacks on security forces in the restive region.
The Sistan-Baluchestan Police Information Center said an explosion occurred as two police units were leaving the Golshan County Police Headquarters, followed by gunfire from armed individuals. Police returned fire, killing one attacker and wounding several others, according to the statement.
Police said security forces were deployed in the area and were working to identify and pursue the remaining attackers.
Golshan is a border county whose administrative center is the city of Jaleq, around 400 kilometers southeast of Zahedan, the provincial capital.
Baluchi rights monitor Haalvsh gave a more extensive account of the attack, saying unidentified gunmen targeted the police headquarters on Imam Khomeini Street in Jaleq with rocket-propelled grenades as well as light and semi-heavy weapons. It reported a large explosion followed by sustained gunfire across parts of the city.
Haalvsh said at least one Toyota Hilux used by reinforcements was struck near the headquarters and said its occupants are believed to have been killed or wounded. The rights group said it could not independently verify the number of casualties. It also reported power cuts and severe disruption to communications and internet services during the fighting.
Footage obtained by Haalvsh showed gunfire outside the police headquarters and a Hilux vehicle at the scene.
Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC)-affiliated Tasnim initially cited security sources denying reports of a rocket attack in Jaleq and saying no attack had been reported. Minutes later, the outlet reported police statements confirming an explosion and an armed clash, saying an attacker had been killed and others wounded.
No group had publicly claimed responsibility for Wednesday’s attack as of publication, and police did not attribute it to a specific organization. Haalvsh likewise said the identities and affiliations of the attackers remained unknown. Tasnim blamed the Baluch militant group Jaish al-Adl.
Jaish al-Adl, the most prominent armed Baluchi group operating in the province, has carried out and claimed numerous attacks against Iranian police, border guards and the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) in recent years. The group says it fights for greater political, religious and economic rights for Iran’s predominantly Sunni Baluch minority.
The assault comes amid a sharp rise in attacks and security operations across Sistan-Baluchestan. Two police officers were killed and another wounded on Monday when gunmen attacked a patrol on the Bampur-Iranshahr road. No group immediately claimed responsibility for that attack.
Last week, another police officer was killed in an attack on a checkpoint in Rask, while security forces subsequently carried out operations in nearby villages following an attack on an intelligence facility.
Sistan-Baluchestan, which borders Pakistan and Afghanistan, is among Iran’s most impoverished and least-developed provinces and has long experienced armed insurgency, security crackdowns and tensions between Tehran and the predominantly Sunni Baluch population.
