Attack On Police Station In Southeast Iran Leaves Six People Dead

According to Iranian state media, gunmen and suicide bombers attacked a police station in Iran’s unrest-plagued southeast today, killing two police officers and four attackers.

The attack took place in Zahedan, the capital of the province of Sistan-Baluchistan, which saw some of the deadliest demonstrations during a wave of nationwide upheaval last year brought on by the death of a young Kurdish lady while in the care of the morality police.

According to state media, the raid claimed “all four terrorists” and two police officers. Several media outlets reported that three assailants had been killed when a police spokeswoman confirmed this.

Sistan-Baluchistan is one of Iran’s poorest provinces and a key conduit for drug trafficking. It borders Pakistan and Afghanistan.

Human rights organizations claim that the up to 2 million-strong Baluch minority has endured decades of discrimination and repression.

Even though unrest has decreased in most other regions of the country, Zahedan has seen weekly rallies since protestors were killed on September 30, 2022.

According to Amnesty International, the security forces onslaught on protestors resulted in at least 66 fatalities. Later, the police chief and commander of a Zahedan police station were fired by the authorities.

Authorities attribute the beginning of the shooting on September 30 to Jaish al-Adl, also known as the Army of Justice, a Baluch militant organization that they claim has safe havens in Pakistan. No other group, including Jaish al-Adl, made a role claim.