Militants attack police station killing officer in southeastern Iran

Four militants attacked a police station and killed an officer in southeastern Iran, state TV reported on July 8.

The armed group attacked a police station in Zahedan, a city in Iran’s Sistan and Baluchistan province, about 30 kilometers (18.64 miles) from the border with Pakistan, triggering a shootout.

One policeman was killed.

According to AP, the report quoted Alireza Marhamati, the province’s deputy governor, as saying the militants were trying to gain access to the police station and were equipped with grenades, but did not elaborate further.

Sistan-Baluchistan is one of Iran’s poorest provinces and is home to the Baluchi minority, who adhere to Sunni Islam rather than the Shia branch predominant in Iran.

In May, five Iranian border guards were killed during clashes with an armed group in Saravan, one of the deadliest attacks in Sistan-Baluchistan in months.

State media reported at the time that the attack was carried out by “a terrorist group that was seeking to infiltrate the country” but whose members “fled the scene after suffering injuries.”