ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - An Iranian police officer was killed in an attack carried out by armed individuals on a patrol in the northwestern part of Sistan and Baluchestan province, semi-official Iranian media reported Thursday. The incident comes amid sporadic clashes between Iranian security forces and armed elements that have continued in the southeastern province in recent weeks.
The patrol in Nosratabad district, northwest of the provincial capital Zahedan, was targeted “while carrying out its duties,” local police said, as cited by Mehr News Agency, describing the assault as “a terrorist attack by armed criminals.”
In addition to the officer killed, police said several of the attackers “were wounded” in the incident but had “fled the scene,” adding that security forces had “launched an operation to identify and apprehend the perpetrators.”
Haalvsh, an independent watchdog that monitors human rights violations in Sistan and Baluchestan province, on Thursday confirmed the “attack on a military vehicle” in Nosratabad, reporting that “armed individuals” had attacked police “special forces,” causing casualties among those on board.
As of publication, no group had claimed responsibility for the attack.
Sistan and Baluchestan is a large, impoverished and underdeveloped frontier province bordering Afghanistan and Pakistan, populated mainly by Iran's ethnic Baloch and Sunni Muslim communities. The province has long faced deep-rooted security challenges, with Iranian security forces confronting Baloch armed groups, including Jaish ul-Adl.
While localized anti-state and tribal unrest predates it, 2003 marked the beginning of an organized, modern militant campaign against Iranian security forces in the region. The province is also a frequent focal point for anti-establishment sentiment and periodic protests, alongside persistent reports of heavy-handed state crackdowns on local populations.
As of late, Sistan and Baluchestan has in recent weeks been the scene of on-and-off clashes between Iranian forces and armed groups.
Iranian police said Wednesday that one armed attacker was killed and several others wounded after an explosion and gunfire targeted police units in Golshan county, in the eastern part of the province.
On Monday, two police officers were killed and another was wounded when gunmen attacked a patrol in Bampur county, in the south-central part of the province. Later that day, one person was killed and two others were injured in Rask county, further south. Haalvsh and Iranian outlets gave conflicting accounts of whether the casualties were civilians or security personnel.
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