Unrest Grows in Iran's Border Region of Balochistan

Violence is increasing in a region of southeastern Iran that borders both Pakistan and Afghanistan. The area is home to the Baloch people, an ethnic minority group who have long struggled with poverty and discrimination. In recent weeks, there have been attacks, assassinations, and armed clashes in the provincial capital of Zahedan and in smaller towns along the border. Experts say the unrest is being driven by deep economic problems and years of unequal treatment.

The province where much of this violence is happening is called Sistan and Baluchistan. It is one of the poorest regions in all of Iran. Most of the people who live there are Sunni Muslims, and the area has poor roads, limited schools, and not enough clean water. Across the border, the Pakistani province of Balochistan faces similar problems, even though the ground beneath it holds large amounts of natural gas, gold, and copper.

Several armed groups are active in the area, and some of them want to create an independent Baloch homeland. In December 2025, a number of these groups in Iran joined together under one name: the Popular Fighters Front. Observers believe this move is an attempt to better organize both their political goals and their military actions. Iranian journalist Mehdi Nakhl Ahmadi, who has reported on the Baloch people for years, said this new alliance could try to take advantage of security gaps caused by the broader Iran war.

Ahmadi explained that the Baloch people have real and lasting reasons to be upset. He said that Iran's government has treated ethnic and religious minority regions unfairly for decades, which has made the economic gap between those areas and the rest of the country even wider. The rising number of attacks, he added, shows that something is changing — groups are becoming more coordinated and are carrying out operations in new ways. Recent clashes have killed members of Iran's Revolutionary Guards, the Basij militia, and a Sunni religious leader.

A source inside Iran, who could not be named for safety reasons, said that much of the violence comes from anger over political, economic, and religious issues. Baloch people face discrimination in jobs, education, regional spending, and religious practice, the source explained. Community leaders — including religious figures and professors — had tried for years to push peacefully for better conditions. When those efforts failed, some people became more willing to use violence instead.

Executions are another major source of anger. The Baloch make up only about 2 to 6 percent of Iran's total population, but they represent a much larger share of those who are executed. According to the group Iran Human Rights, Baluchis made up 9 percent of all recorded executions in 2025, 11 percent in 2024, and 20 percent in 2023. Most of these executions are connected to drug offenses. For many people in this poor region, smuggling drugs or fuel across the border is one of the only ways to make money.

Violence has also gone up on the Pakistani side of the border. The Pakistan Institute for Conflict and Security Studies recorded 131 armed attacks in Pakistan's Balochistan province in September alone, compared to 89 in August. The Pakistani Taliban has also been growing its operations there, putting important roads and transport routes between Iran and Pakistan under pressure. It is not yet clear whether all of this recent violence in Iran is directly linked to the war, but experts agree the situation in this fragile border region is getting worse.