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Iran
The site of Monday's shelling on Shaho mountain in Iran's Kurdistan province. Photo: Arsalan Yarahmedi/submitted
ERBIL, Kurdistan Region — Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) convoys shelled Shaho mountain in Iran’s Kurdistan province on Monday, a Kurdish rights group reported, saying the attack was earlier in the year than expected.
“An Iranian military convoy carrying the heavy equipments of the [IRGC] have stationed near the village of Kani Hosseinbag of Sarvabad, bombarding the heights of Shaho Mountain located between the villages of Deyvaznav and Daleh Marz,” said the Paris-based Kurdistan Human Rights Network (KHRN).
The bombing continued for around four hours, and damaged a lot of the area’s nature, the director of Hengaw Organization for Human Rights, Arsalan Yarahmedi told Rudaw English on Monday.
Shaho mountain is part of the Zagros mountain range located on the border with the Kurdistan Region, between the cities of Sarvabad, Ravansar, Paveh, Marivan, and Kamyaran. It is considered to be a protected area for its nature and vast wildlife habitat.
KHRN founder Rebin Rahmani said that it had been the target of IRGC bombings since 2008, as the activity of Kurdish opposition parties has increased in the region.
“PJAK (The Free Life Party of Kurdistan) and Kurdistan Democratic Party of Iran (KDPI) are mostly active in the area, however they do not have any military base there,” Rahmani told Rudaw English on Monday.
“Before 2005, there were no IRGC military bases at Shaho, however since 2008, they have built many roads and have set up at least eight bases there,” he added.
Video footage sent to Rudaw English by Rahmani shows an IRGC operation on Shaho back in 2018.
“On Sunday, Oct 6, a live streaming video from the provincial channel showed that Pearkhrad area has been bombarded by IRGC helicopters. This impassable area is one of the few habitats of wild goats due to the lack of resistance,” KHRN reported at the time.
امروز چندین فروند هلیکوپتر نیروی هوانیروز سپاه اقدام به بمباران قله پیرخدر کوهستان شاهو کردهاند. بخشی عظیمی از مراتع شاهو در جریان توپباران و بمباران نیروهای سپاه در آتش سوخته است.
— Kurdistan Human Rights Network (@KurdistanHRN) October 7, 2018
منطقه کوهستانی شاهو همچنان توسط بالغ بر ۲۰ هزار نیروی سپاه محاصره شده است. #شاهو_در_آتش pic.twitter.com/avhVOaf9mQ
Established in 2003, the PJAK is considered the Iranian wing of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), but the PJAK claims it is linked only by shared ideology.
The PJAK has lost 300 fighters in clashes with Iranian security forces and in shelling by both Iran and Turkey since the group's foundation, according to a written statement sent to Rudaw English by senior PJAK member Ahvand Chiako in July.
Rahmani added that this year, the IRGC bombing started earlier than usual, saying bombing so soon after Newroz is “uncommon.”
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