Revolutionary Guards Confirm Deadly Attacks in Iran’s Restive Southeast

Iran’s Revolutionary Guards have confirmed an armed clash on the Zahedan-Fahraj road that resulted in the deaths of “three law enforcement personnel and one ordinary citizen,” according to a statement issued early Tuesday. Security and intelligence agencies have launched investigations into the incident.

The clash occurred in a region overseen by the IRGC’s Qods Ground Forces headquarters, one of ten regional commands that covers Iran’s largest geographic operational area, spanning Sistan-Baluchestan and Kerman provinces. This command structure controls multiple provincial Guards units and key combat brigades in the southeastern border region.

Haalvsh, a regional rights group monitoring unrest in the area, provided additional details that differ slightly from official accounts. According to their reports, the Fahraj incident took place at a checkpoint in neighboring Kerman province, resulting in the deaths of four security personnel – two intelligence officers and two police – with several others wounded. The organization released video footage showing injured officers and bodies being transported from the scene.

Simultaneously, a second armed confrontation was reported in Iranshahr, also located in Sistan-Baluchestan province. Haalvsh reported that gunmen targeted three military vehicles in the early hours of Tuesday, causing an unspecified number of casualties among security personnel. Local sources indicated that roads leading toward Zahedan were subsequently blocked by military forces, stranding travelers with no timeline for reopening.

Iranian authorities have not disclosed casualty figures for the Iranshahr attack, nor have they provided information about the identity or motives of the attackers. No group has officially claimed responsibility for either incident.

Escalating Pattern of Violence

These attacks are the latest in a series of armed confrontations in Iran’s impoverished southeast, which shares borders with Pakistan and Afghanistan. The region has long experienced violence involving Sunni Baluch militant groups and Iranian security forces.

Just last week, the Revolutionary Guards announced that four of their members were killed and three wounded in an attack by what they described as “terrorist and hostile groups” in the Lar area near Zahedan. Shortly afterward, Haalvsh reported that a newly formed coalition calling itself the “Popular Fighters Front” claimed responsibility, stating they had ambushed a Guards convoy.

The Popular Fighters Front publicly announced its formation earlier this month, presenting itself as a merger of several Baluch political and militant factions. This coalition includes the PADA Baluch Movement, Harakat Nasr Balochistan, Jaish al-Adl, the Mohammad Rasulallah group led by Haji Vahed Bakhsh, and what they describe as “spontaneous Baluch fighters.”

New Coalition, Evolving Strategy

In a video message released online, a masked spokesman identified as Mahmoud Baluch stated that the coalition aims to increase the effectiveness of resistance against what he characterized as oppression by Iran’s ruling system. While the group’s manifesto emphasizes civil, media, and political action, it has not renounced armed operations and has claimed responsibility for recent attacks.

Security analysts note that Jaish al-Adl – designated as a terrorist organization by both Iran and the United States – has emerged as the dominant force within this new coalition. The group formed around 2012 following the execution of Abdelmalek Rigi, leader of its predecessor organization Jundullah, and has since carried out bombings, ambushes, and suicide attacks against Iranian police, border guards, and Revolutionary Guards forces.

Iranian state-linked media have attempted to downplay the significance of this merger, portraying it as merely a rebranding of weakened factions seeking foreign support. Some outlets have alleged links to Israeli intelligence, claims that the groups deny.

The emergence of the Popular Fighters Front appears to reflect a strategic shift by Baluch militants to broaden their appeal beyond a narrowly defined Sunni ethnic insurgency. Recent statements have adopted more inclusive language, addressing Kurds, Arabs, Turks, and other minorities while framing their struggle in terms of shared political and economic marginalization.

This strategic evolution follows years of intensified counterinsurgency operations by Iranian forces in Sistan-Baluchestan, including arrests, cross-border pressure near Pakistan, and heightened surveillance. Despite these security measures, militant groups continue to demonstrate the capacity to stage deadly attacks.

Iran’s southeastern region remains among the country’s poorest areas, with longstanding grievances over discrimination, underdevelopment, and security policies. These tensions intensified during the nationwide protests of 2022, when security forces carried out lethal crackdowns in Baluch and Kurdish areas.

According to a recent analysis by Al-Monitor, while transforming a Baluch-based insurgency into a national movement would require organizational depth and cross-ethnic networks that militant groups have historically lacked, this new coalition “adds a layer of political complexity” for Tehran as it struggles to maintain security in its restive border provinces.