Militant Attack on Iranian Courthouse in Sistan-Baluchestan Leaves at Least Nine Dead; Jaish al-Adl Claims Responsibility

At least nine individuals, including a mother and her child, were killed and 22 others sustained injuries in a coordinated assault on a courthouse in Iran’s southeastern province of Sistan-Baluchestan, according to Iranian state and local media reports. The attack, which occurred on Saturday, has been attributed to the jihadist separatist group Jaish al-Adl, which subsequently claimed responsibility via a statement on the messaging platform Telegram.
Eyewitnesses and local human rights observers reported that the attackers initially infiltrated the courthouse, opening fire on individuals inside. The assault escalated as militants launched mortar rounds and grenades, triggering a prolonged armed confrontation with Iranian security forces that lasted approximately three hours, according to the Baluch human rights group Haalvsh.
Iranian state media confirmed that three assailants were killed during the confrontation. Authorities also stated that several of the wounded are in critical condition and have been transported to nearby medical facilities for treatment. In their public statement, Jaish al-Adl urged civilians to evacuate the vicinity of the courthouse "for their safety." Roads leading to the area were closed following the incident, and multiple explosions and rounds of gunfire were reported by local residents.
Sistan-Baluchestan, a border province adjacent to Pakistan and Afghanistan, has long been a locus of insurgency, largely driven by ethnic and sectarian tensions involving Iran's Sunni Baluch minority. The community has consistently reported systemic marginalisation and political exclusion under the governance of the predominantly Shia Islamic Republic of Iran.
The broader insurgency in the region is tied to the protracted conflict in Balochistan, which extends into Pakistan and is marked by recurrent violence carried out by separatist and Islamist militant factions. Jaish al-Adl, established as an offshoot of the now-defunct Jundallah group, has been engaged in armed confrontation with Iranian security forces since 2014 and is officially designated a terrorist organisation by Tehran.
Previous attacks by the group have included the December 2023 assault on a police station that left 11 officers dead, and a January 2024 cross-border incident targeting Iranian border guards. The latter prompted retaliatory strikes by Iran into Pakistani territory, targeting what it claimed was a Jaish al-Adl cell operating from across the border.
Iranian authorities allege that the group benefits from foreign financial and logistical support and is involved in illicit smuggling operations. On Saturday, the deputy police chief of Sistan-Baluchestan, Sardar Alireza Deliri, described the group as affiliated with “Zionist” elements, alluding to alleged Israeli involvement. He further noted that the three militants killed were equipped with suicide vests that had not been detonated at the time of their deaths.
Source: BBC News, The Guardian.