Overview
- A senior IRGC commander, Brig. Gen. Hossein Zarifi, was killed during a joint security operation in the Jihadabad area of Saravan, with Iranian outlets and the IRGC confirming the death late Wednesday.
- Iranian state agencies said the raid, carried out by the IRGC, the Intelligence Ministry and police, targeted a group they called terrorists and resulted in five alleged militants killed, multiple arrests, and seized weapons and ammunition.
- Local Baloch group Haalvsh named the People’s Fighters Front as involved, reported additional Iranian casualties including an intelligence officer, and said security forces surrounded Razi Hospital and disrupted services.
- Video footage circulated by Haalvsh showed sustained gunfire, a drone overhead, heavy smoke and a building on fire, but these images and many casualty claims have not been independently verified by outside outlets.
- The clashes follow months of intensified operations in Sistan-Baluchestan, a Sunni Baloch border province with a long-running insurgency, and the incident could lead to more security sweeps and further strain on local civilians and health services.