An Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps commander has been killed in fighting with armed men in Iran’s restive south-east province of Sistan and Baluchestan, state media said.
Brig Gen Hossein Zarifi, head of the IRGC’s Shahid Sajjad base in Saravan, was killed during an operation against what Iranian authorities described as an “enemy-backed” militant group.
Fighting was still raging early on Thursday in the Jihadabad area of Saravan, about 50km from Iran’s border with Pakistan, with heavy gunfire reported in the area, the Baloch rights group Haalvsh said.
The IRGC’s regional base said in a statement carried by Tasnim news agency that Brig Gen Zarifi “gave his life on the front line of battle”.
The official Irna news agency said forces from the IRGC, the Intelligence Ministry and the police had targeted what authorities described as a “terrorist group” that they claimed had been planning an attack in Saravan.
Irna reported that five members of the group were killed and several others were arrested. Weapons and ammunition were also seized from the group’s hideout.
Tasnim said the operation followed intelligence gathered after a public tip and that security forces had identified the group before launching the raid.
The clashes come amid intensified security operations against armed groups in Sistan and Baluchestan, with Iranian authorities reporting a series of raids and confrontations around Saravan in recent weeks.
The province, which borders Afghanistan and Pakistan, has long experienced attacks by Baloch armed groups and clashes involving Iranian security forces.
In April 2022, Brig Gen Hossein Almassi, an IRGC commander in the province, escaped unharmed when gunmen opened fire on his convoy at a checkpoint in Zahedan, Irna reported at the time. His bodyguard, Mahmoud Absalan, was killed in the attack.
State media said security forces arrested those behind that attack, which came two days after authorities announced the arrest of three people they alleged were linked to Israel’s Mossad intelligence agency.
The province has also seen major attacks by armed groups. In February 2019, at least 27 people were reported killed in a bombing targeting a bus carrying paramilitary forces.
The attack was claimed by Jaish-al-Adl, an armed group operating among Iran’s Balochs, state media said.
Haalvsh reported that the People’s Fighters Front was involved in the latest fighting and said its sources had identified additional Iranian casualties, including intelligence officer Ahmad Herati Zeraati.
Haalvsh said hundreds of security personnel surrounded Razi Hospital in Saravan, blocking roads around the facility while allowing ambulances to pass.
The group said several maternity ward patients were discharged without their consent and that internet access in the area was disrupted.
The latest confrontation follows another deadly security operation in Saravan this month, when Iranian authorities said five members of an armed cell and three security personnel were killed.
Iranian authorities have repeatedly described armed groups operating in Sistan and Baluchestan as terrorist organisations, while Baloch rights groups have documented allegations of abuse and heavy-handed security operations in the province.
