Three members of Iran’s Revolutionary Guards Ground Force were killed on Wednesday "during a mission to secure the country’s borders" in a southeastern area near Zahedan, Iranian state media said.
The forces were part of the IRGC’s Quds Base unit and were killed during what authorities described as an encounter with armed militant groups near the border in Sistan-Baluchestan province.
State media said pursuit operations were under way, but added that few details had been released so far.
Iran’s southeast, which borders Pakistan and Afghanistan, has long been a focus of unrest and armed violence. The mainly Sunni Baluch region has seen repeated attacks on security forces, courts and government buildings by militant groups.
The incident follows a deadly attack earlier this year on a courthouse in Zahedan in which nine people, including three assailants, were killed, according to state media. Militants opened fire inside the building before shooting at civilians outside.
Jaish al-Adl, a Baluch Sunni militant group, later said it carried out the courthouse attack. The group has staged previous assaults on Iranian security forces and is designated a terrorist organization by both Iran and the United States.
“Tehran and Minsk have complementary economies and can meet each other’s needs,” Aref said, stressing that political goodwill between the two nations provides “a strong basis for broadening ties in trade, industry, and technology.”
The two-day meeting, co-chaired by Iran’s Industry Minister Mohammad Atabak and Belarusian Industry Minister Andrei Kuznetsov, brought together senior officials, business representatives, and experts from both countries to outline a new phase of economic, scientific, and industrial cooperation.
Atabak announced that Tehran and Minsk had agreed to establish joint industrial plants in Sistan-Baluchestan Province in southeastern Iran, focusing on the production of heavy machinery, agricultural equipment, and mining technology as part of efforts to expand bilateral industrial cooperation. He called the initiative “a turning point” in bilateral industrial relations and part of efforts to implement the Iran–Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) free trade agreement.
Atabak added that the two governments aim to remove banking and customs obstacles, enhance trade facilitation, and allow Belarusian firms to use Iran’s southern ports as gateways to markets in India, Africa, and Southeast Asia.
Officials also discussed joint ventures in pharmaceuticals, medical technology, and higher education, including university partnerships and mutual recognition of degrees. Aref said these initiatives could “turn scientific and technological cooperation into one of the pillars” of Iran–Belarus relations.
