Gunmen Kill 3 Border Guards in Attack in Restive Southeastern Iran 

Iranian soldiers guard a patrol post in Zabol, southeastern Iran, near the Afghan border, on Oct. 10, 2012. (AFP/Getty Images)
Iranian soldiers guard a patrol post in Zabol, southeastern Iran, near the Afghan border, on Oct. 10, 2012. (AFP/Getty Images)
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Gunmen Kill 3 Border Guards in Attack in Restive Southeastern Iran 

Iranian soldiers guard a patrol post in Zabol, southeastern Iran, near the Afghan border, on Oct. 10, 2012. (AFP/Getty Images)
Iranian soldiers guard a patrol post in Zabol, southeastern Iran, near the Afghan border, on Oct. 10, 2012. (AFP/Getty Images)

Gunmen killed three border guards and wounded one other person Thursday in restive southeastern Iran, state-run media reported.

IRNA news agency reported that gunmen in a car opened fire on a border regiment vehicle in Mirjaveh county in southeast Sistan and Baluchistan province, near the Pakistani border, killing two soldiers and an officer. A civilian was wounded.

IRNA said the armed group Jaish al-Adl, which allegedly seeks greater rights for the ethnic Baluch minority, claimed responsibility for the attack.

In April, in two separate clashes in the province, at least 22 Iranian policemen died.

The province, bordering Afghanistan and Pakistan, has been the site of occasional deadly clashes involving militant groups, armed drug smugglers, and Iranian security forces. In December, militants killed nearly a dozen police officers in an attack on a police station in the province.

Sistan and Baluchistan province is one of the least developed parts of Iran.



EU Mulls Steps Against Iran's Aviation Sector

European Union High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Josep Borrell speaks during a press conference in downtown Beirut, Lebanon, 12 September 2024. EPA/WAEL HAMZEH
European Union High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Josep Borrell speaks during a press conference in downtown Beirut, Lebanon, 12 September 2024. EPA/WAEL HAMZEH
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EU Mulls Steps Against Iran's Aviation Sector

European Union High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Josep Borrell speaks during a press conference in downtown Beirut, Lebanon, 12 September 2024. EPA/WAEL HAMZEH
European Union High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Josep Borrell speaks during a press conference in downtown Beirut, Lebanon, 12 September 2024. EPA/WAEL HAMZEH

The European Union is considering sanctions targeting Iran's aviation sector, the bloc's chief diplomat said on Friday in reaction to reports Tehran supplied Russia with ballistic missiles in its war against Ukraine.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has said Russia received ballistic missiles from Iran and would likely use them in Moscow's war against Ukraine within weeks, a charge Iran has denied.

"The European Union has repeatedly strongly cautioned Iran against transfers of ballistic missiles to Russia," EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said in a statement, adding the EU would "respond swiftly and in coordination with international partners.”

Iran's government on Thursday summoned the envoys of Britain, France, Germany and the Netherlands over their accusations that Tehran supplied short-range ballistic missiles to Russia.

State-run IRNA news agency reported that the country’s foreign ministry summoned the envoys separately to strongly condemn the accusations.