Daijiworld Media Network - Tehran
Tehran, Oct 15: Afsaneh Aqila, commander of the Afzal Sisters’ Basij unit in Mehrestan, a border county in Iran’s Sistan and Baluchestan province, was killed in an attack on Wednesday, Iranian state media reported.
Aqila was reportedly shot dead outside her home in front of her children. The IRGC-affiliated Tasnim News Agency alleged that the attackers had links to Israel and the United States but did not identify the group responsible or provide evidence for the claim.
In a separate incident in the same province, security officer Mohsen Shahriyari was killed while confronting what the Islamic Republic News Agency described as a “terrorist group.”
Provincial police commander Sardar Mohammadreza Eshaqi condemned the killings and paid tribute to Aqila, describing her as “a woman of faith, courage, and sacrifice.” He also extended condolences to their colleagues, the people of Mehrestan and the Basij community in the province.
Attacks targeting members of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and other security personnel in Sistan and Baluchestan appear to have increased in recent weeks. The US-based Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA) reported that at least 94 people were killed and 33 injured in 63 armed incidents across southeastern Iran between March 31 and October 10.
The Iranian People's Fighters Front claimed responsibility for six of the incidents documented by HRANA, while responsibility for the remaining attacks remains unknown.
Last week, Tasnim reported that Lieutenant Colonel Nosrat Eftekhari, deputy for cultural and social affairs of the Law Enforcement Command in the province, was killed in what the agency described as a “terrorist attack.”
Earlier this week, Haalvsh, an independent human rights organisation and news outlet covering Sistan and Baluchestan, reported that more than 20 members of the Fatemiyoun group were killed or wounded in an hours-long clash on Tuesday. The Iran-backed Shia group consists primarily of Afghan Hazara refugees and migrants and is funded and trained by the IRGC.
The attacks come as Iranian authorities seek to project strength and public support for the Basij, a paramilitary force affiliated with the IRGC. The Islamic Republic has released images of its Janfada, or self-sacrifice, training exercises, featuring women training with firearms and drones.
Janfada spokesperson Sasan Zare claimed that more than 500,000 women registered within 100 minutes of the opening of registration for the “National Resistance” battalions, filling the first 1,000 units.
However, the Iran Human Rights Monitor has alleged that authorities are recruiting violent criminals into the Basij in exchange for conditional release from prison. According to the monitor, which cited testimonies from inmates and their families, prison sources and human rights groups, prisoners convicted of general, violent or drug-related offences were reportedly offered repentance forms in August and September and granted bail after registering with the Basij.