Fatal Shooting Sparks Outrage In Iran’s Kurdish City

One individual was killed, and several others injured when regime agents opened fire on a group of Kolbars near the border area of Nowsud city in Kermanshah.

Kolbars, known as "those who carry a load" in Persian-Kurdish, engage in the arduous task of transporting goods across the treacherous mountainous border between Iran and Iraq, often facing economic desperation.

The victim has been identified as Aso Karimi, a 39-year-old Kolber from Paveh, who sustained a fatal gunshot wound to the head. Karimi's body was discovered nearly 19 hours after the incident, alongside nine other severely injured Kolbars.

The incident has ignited outrage among civil activists and Kolbars in Paveh, prompting a planned protest rally in front of the city governor's office on Tuesday.

Ehsan Rasouli, one of the injured, underwent surgery after sustaining a gunshot wound to the chest. Others were reported to have suffered injuries to various parts of their bodies, including the head, back, hands, and feet, with some being in critical condition.

Statistics released by Kolbar News paint a distressing picture of the risks faced by Kolbars in the region. In the first half of 2023 alone, 61 Kolbars lost their lives in border areas and inter-road routes of West Azarbaijan, Kordestan, and Kermanshah provinces. Causes of these deaths include direct fire by regime forces, avalanches, frostbite, mine-related accidents, and falls from mountains and heights.