MESOPOTAMIA NEWS THIS WEEKS IRAN / KURDISTAN REPORT

Iran  – 2 July 2019 – Iranian border guards inflicted three casualties on Kurdish border porters known as Kolbars last week. On June 25, a 16-year-old Kolbar was killed by Iranian guards near Baneh. Himen Salihpoor was part of a group of Kolbars attempting to cross the border when they were ambushed by Iranian authorities. On June 26, also near Baneh, Iranian border guards shot and wounded another Kolbar. On Thursday, a Kolbar named Ali Hassani was transferred to a hospital in Marivan after being wounded by Iranian guards in the Hawraman region.

At least two arson attacks were documented in the Kurdish region of Iran during the week of June 24-July 1. On Saturday, about ten acres of forested land were set ablaze in Sanandaj. Additionally, near Saqqez, around five acres Kurdish-owned agriculture were targeted by arson, though in this case, locals were able to eventually control the fire and prevent its spread.

The Iranian regime continued to target politically active Kurds in Iranian Kurdistan last week. In Kamyaran, Iranian intelligence officers (Ettela’at) arrested a Kurdish activist named Sirwan Ibrahimi. According to the Kurdistan Human Rights Association (KMMK), the Ettela’at raided Ibrahimi’s home and confiscated his personal belongings which included a laptop computer and cell phone. On Wednesday, a Kurdish language instructor named Minat Rahmani was detained by the Ettela’at in Kamyaran. Rahmani is a member of the Kurdish cultural organization called Nozhen. In Kermanshah, the Iranian regime detained 11 Kurds, mostly environmental activists, on Thursday and Friday. In Sanandaj, an Islamic Revolutionary Court sentenced a Kurdish activist named Madeh Fatihi to four years in prison. Fatihi had already been in prison for 20 months serving a previously imposed sentence.

On Sunday, clashes took place between the Democratic Party of Iranian Kurdistan (KDPI) and the Iranian Revolutionary Guards (IRGC) in the Choman District near the Iran-Iraq border. The IRGC used heavy artillery to strike numerous locations in the region. The KDPI previously declared its intent to return to armed operations in March 2016.