Militants have carried out a major attack on bases of the powerful Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) in South-East Iran.
The deputy interior Minister, Majid Mirahmadi, said on Thursday that eight attackers and five members of the security forces were killed, according to the state news agency IRNA.
The attacks took place in the early hours of Thursday on military installations in the cities of Rask and Chahbahar in Sistan and Baluchestan province, state media reported.
Reports referred to a “foiled terrorist attack.’’The exact extent was still unclear in the early morning.
State broadcaster videos showed gunfire during street clashes. However, security forces had brought the cities back under control on Thursday morning, Iranian media reported further.
The militant group Jaish al-Adl had claimed responsibility for the attack.
According to its own statements, it is fighting for independence in south-east Iran.
A few months ago, the city of Rask was the scene of clashes between the group and Iran’s security forces.
On its Telegram channel, Jaish al-Adl claimed to have attacked at least six military installations.
It called on residents of the region to stay in their homes.
The information from the province could not be independently verified.
Jaish al-Adl, a Sunni rebel group, has intensified its attacks over the past year.
Most of the province’s inhabitants followed the Sunni branch of Islam, in contrast to the Shiite state religion.
The U.S. and Iran have classified the group as a terrorist organisation.
In mid-January, the Revolutionary Guards shelled positions of the militant group in neighbouring Pakistan, where their retreat areas are said to be located.
This temporarily led to serious disagreement between Tehran and Islamabad.
