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Iranwire – Tension was reportedly high in two predominantly Baluch cities in the southeastern Iranian province of Zahedan after armed forces stormed at least three Sunni mosques there and arrested an undisclosed number of people.
The Campaign of Baluch Activists reported that two mosques were raided in the provincial capital of Zahedan on December 18, resulting in the arrest of students and religious activists.
Security forces arrived at the Tajweed Al-Qur’an mosque by bus and transported those detained to an undisclosed location, it said.
The name of the second mosque targeted was not immediately known.
The report said that protests erupted around the mosques after the raids.
Haalvsh, an organization that monitors rights violations in Sistan and Baluchistan, reported the arrest of at least 10 Sunni religious activists in the city of Rask after a raid on a mosque.
Those detained were identified as members of the Tablighi Jamaat religious movement.
The raids come amid increased security measures across Sistan and Baluchistan after a deadly attack on a police station in Rask last week.
State television reported that at least 11 police officers were killed in the December 15 assault, which was claimed by the Sunni militant group Jaish al-Adl (Army of Justice).
Baluch human rights groups reported the presence of military vehicles and helicopters in Rask.
The impoverished province of Sistan and Baluchistan borders Afghanistan and Pakistan. It is home to a Sunni Baluch minority of up to 2 million people in a country where the population is predominantly Shia.
Human rights groups say the Baluch population and other minorities in Iran face widespread discrimination in the judicial system and their everyday lives, with the authorities curtailing their access to education, employment, adequate housing and political office.
