Sunni Leader Condemns Militants’ Deadly Attack On Police Station
Iran's Sunni leader Mowlavi Abdolhamid has condemned a deadly attack on a police station allegedly carried out by a Sunni militant group.
At least 12 officers were killed and seven injured in the attack on the police station in Rask said to have been carried out by militant group Jaish al-Adl.
Speaking in his Friday sermon after the incident in the city in Iran's Sistan-Baluchistan Province, Mowlavi Abdolhamid said "We must ensure that the security of the province and our safety are not compromised."
Abdolhamid, the Friday prayer in Zahedan, the provincial capital of the Sunni-majority Sistan-Baluchestan, has been a vocal critic of Iran's Shiite-led government and has urged tolerance towards minorities.
In July, the Jaish al-Adl group attacked a police station in Zahedan which they claimed was involved in the killing of approximately 90 civilians on September 30, 2022, a day dubbed "Bloody Friday." Security forces shot at worshippers protesting against the government after Friday prayers. The massacre took place amid widespread demonstrations across Iran following the death of Mahsa Amini in the custody of the hijab police.
There have been rallies in the Sunni-majority city since then, following the sermons delivered by the Friday prayer leader.
Although no trial has been held for the perpetrators of the protester killings, several Baloch protesters accused of attacking security forces and law enforcement have been executed.
Iran's southeastern province of Sistan-Baluchistan is one of the most economically depressed regions.
The province is primarily populated by Baluchs, most of whom are Sunnis. Their execution rate has historically ranked among the highest among Iran's minorities.
On Saturday the UN Special Rapporteur on Iran said the levels of killings, torture, and brutality against the Baluch minority in Iran are “shocking”
In his last report to the United Nations, Javaid Rehman pointed out that are disproportionately targeted and executed in the Iranian criminal justice system, Baluchis.