Iran thwarts terrorist attack to overtake southeast military bases

Jaish al-Adl terrorists suffered 18 fatalities in attacks on public places and military and law enforcement bases in Iran's southeastern province of Sistan and Baluchestan, the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) says.

The overnight attacks were launched with the intention to seize IRGC headquarters in the towns of Chabahar and Rask, but they were thwarted by Iran's security forces who lost 10 members, an IRGC statement said Thursday.

According to the statement, "a number of terrorists and armed bandits affiliated with foreign intelligence services" launched simultaneous attacks on five public places as well as military and law enforcement bases in Chabahar and Rask in the early hours of Thursday.

They "were met with the tact, patience and intelligence of the security forces," the statement said.

"After making sure that the people are away from the danger of the attackers and any harm, the zealous fighters of the Southeast Security Base of the IRGC Ground Forces engaged with them with the participation of the police command forces and during a decisive operation all the terrorists and armed bandits were killed and complete security and peace was restored to the areas," it said.

"In the operation, 18 terrorists and armed criminals were killed, 10 security forces were martyred, and a number of others were injured," it added.

Deputy Interior Minister Majid Mirahmadi told national broadcaster IRIB, "The terrorists failed to succeed achieving their goal of seizing the IRGC headquarters in Chabahar and Rask."

The Jaish al-Adl terrorist group has claimed responsibility for several attacks in recent years on Iranian security forces in Sistan and Baluchestan.

The area, which borders Afghanistan and Pakistan, has long been the site of frequent clashes between Iranian security forces and Takfiri terrorists as well as drug traffickers.

In December, the terrorist group attacked a police station in the town of Rask, killing 11 security personnel. Iran responded to the attack, targeting two bases of the terrorist group in Pakistan with missiles.

Official news agency IRNA on Thursday described Jaish al-Adl as the "terrorist group of Jaish al-Zulm (Army of Brutality), whose nature and dependence on the infamous Zionist regime is quite clear".

The overnight attack by the group conspicuously coincides with the aftermath of an Israeli airstrike on Iran's consular section in Damascus which left 13 people dead, including seven IRGC military advisors.  

The IRGC's Thursday statement said, "We warn the regional and extra-regional enemies and terrorist groups and armed villains hired by their spy services that the national security and peace of the people in every part of dear Iran is the red line of the defenders of the security of the Islamic homeland and any threatening factor and element in this arena will be decisively dealt with."

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