Iran Renewed Shelling of Southern Kurdistan
Since 10:30 AM today, August 11, Iran renewed indiscriminate shelling of the border area between eastern (Iranian) and southern (Iraqi) Kurdistan. While some of PDKI bases have been targeted, mainly civilian populated areas in the Soran region of southern Kurdistan were shelled by Iran. The shelling comes following clashes between Kurdish civilians and Iranian paramilitary forces in eastern Kurdistan earlier this week.
This is the second time in the past months Iran resorts to indiscriminate shelling of southern Kurdistan. Following heavy clashes between PDKI’s Peshmerga Forces and Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) in June, Iran resorted to indiscriminate shelling of the border area between eastern and southern Kurdistan on June 26.
PDKI’s Peshmerga Forces report that Iran uses phosphorus artillery shells against Peshmerga bases. According to the report, today’s shelling has not ceased as of this hour. The shelling has caused major damages to the environment and the property of civilians.
Thus far, there are no reports of civilian casualties. PDKI’s Peshmerga Forces have not suffered any casualties. Baxtiar Qader, a correspondent of the Kurdish network Rudaw, was injured when he reported live.
The renewed shelling of PDKI’s bases and civilian populated areas in southern Kurdistan by Iran comes after clashes between civilians and Iranian paramilitary forces in eastern Kurdistan earlier this week.
On Monday, August 8, an Iranian paramilitary unit and youths clashed in the Kurdish city Saqez, in which some members of the paramilitary unit and agents of the local branch of Iran’s intelligence agency were injured. According to sources, an Iranian intelligence agent by the name of “Jalal”, who together with plain clothes from the intelligence agency had attacked the Kurdish youths in Saqez, later died in hospital.
On Tuesday, August 9, unidentified individuals attacked a vehicle belonging to the infamous Iranian security forces in the Kurdish city of Mariwan with hand grenades. These so-called security forces, which engage in daily harassment and arbitrary acts of violence against civilians, are regarded as a major security threat by the civilian population in eastern Kurdistan. Three members of Iran’s security forces were injured. According to local sources, one of them, whose name is Abdullah Mroati, later died in hospital due to his injuries.
On August 3, two members of Iran’s notorious intelligence agency in the Kurdish city of Bokan came under attack. One of the agents by the name of Khosraw Salahchimen was killed.
Iran’s notorious intelligence agency is in charge of spreading narcotics in the Kurdish cities and its agents have come under attack in the past.