Sunni Cleric Killed in Southeast Iran

Abdolshakour Kord . Asharq Al-Awsat
Abdolshakour Kord . Asharq Al-Awsat
TT

Sunni Cleric Killed in Southeast Iran

Abdolshakour Kord . Asharq Al-Awsat
Abdolshakour Kord . Asharq Al-Awsat

Gunmen have shot dead a Sunni cleric in a town in southeast Iran, the official IRNA news agency reported on Thursday.

The report said Abdolshakour Kord was killed near a mosque in the Baluchi town of Khash.

IRNA said the cleric was active in both religious and academic fields and that the case is under investigation.

The deputy governor of Khash regretted the incident having taken place.

Anti-regime local sources accused the Iranian intelligence of being involved in the crime.

The authorities in the province announced that Kord’s funeral will be held Friday “with the participation of the nation’s different factions.”

Thursday’s shooting came after the death of an officer from the border guards during clashes with armed men in Sistan and Baluchestan Province on Wednesday.

The officer’s death also came one week after three from the Basij were killed in clashes with armed men in the same province.

Sistan and Baluchestan shares common borders with Afghanistan and Pakistan. 



North Korea Condemns US Military Drills with South Korea, Japan

HANDOUT - 21 November 2024, North Korea, Pyongyang: A photo released by North Korea's official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) on 22 November 2024 shows North Korean leader Kim Jong-un (C) attending the National Defence Development 2024 arms exhibition. Photo: -/kcna/dpa
HANDOUT - 21 November 2024, North Korea, Pyongyang: A photo released by North Korea's official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) on 22 November 2024 shows North Korean leader Kim Jong-un (C) attending the National Defence Development 2024 arms exhibition. Photo: -/kcna/dpa
TT

North Korea Condemns US Military Drills with South Korea, Japan

HANDOUT - 21 November 2024, North Korea, Pyongyang: A photo released by North Korea's official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) on 22 November 2024 shows North Korean leader Kim Jong-un (C) attending the National Defence Development 2024 arms exhibition. Photo: -/kcna/dpa
HANDOUT - 21 November 2024, North Korea, Pyongyang: A photo released by North Korea's official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) on 22 November 2024 shows North Korean leader Kim Jong-un (C) attending the National Defence Development 2024 arms exhibition. Photo: -/kcna/dpa

North Korea condemned on Saturday recent joint military drills by the United States, South Korea and Japan, warning that it would take immediate actions if needed to defend the state.
Last week, the three countries held a three-day joint exercise, dubbed "Freedom Edge", featuring fighter jets and marine patrol aircraft as well as the US nuclear-powered aircraft carrier, USS George Washington.
"We strongly warn the US and its followers hostile towards the DPRK to immediately stop the hostile acts of further causing provocation and instability that can drive the military confrontation in the Korean peninsula and its vicinity into a real armed conflict," the North's defense ministry said, using the country's official name.
The military would keep all options available and take immediate actions if needed to preemptively control risk, while closely watching military activity by the US and its allies, it said in a statement carried by state media KCNA.