TEHRAN: A militant attack near the Pakistani border with Iran left five Iranian forces dead, the state-run IRNA news agency reported Sunday.
The report said the dead were ethnic Baloch members of the paramilitary Revolutionary Guard’s volunteer Basij force and were killed in Saravan city in Sistan and Baluchestan province. Saravan is some 1,400 km (870 miles) southeast of the capital Tehran.
No group immediately claimed responsibility for the attack.
Earlier in the day, state TV reported that Revolutionary Guard forces killed three "terrorists" and arrested nine others in a military operation. The report did not specify which group the suspects belonged to.
Last month, unknown gunmen killed four people, including the chief of the Revolutionary Guard in the province.
In September, gunmen killed four border guards in Sistan and Baluchestan province in two separate attacks. The militant group Jaish al-Adl, which seeks greater rights for the ethnic Baloch minority, claimed responsibility for one attack in which one officer and two soldiers were killed.
The province, which borders Afghanistan and Pakistan, has been the site of occasional deadly clashes involving militant groups, armed drug smugglers and Iranian security forces. It is one of the least developed parts of Iran. Relations between the predominantly Sunni Muslim residents of the region and Iran’s Shiite theocracy have long been strained.
Militant attack on Pakistani border leaves 5 security forces dead, Iran says
https://arab.news/885gg
Militant attack on Pakistani border leaves 5 security forces dead, Iran says
- No group claims responsibility for attack that took place in Iran's Saravan city in southeast
- Sistan-Baluchestan province has been site of clashes involving militant groups, armed drug smugglers
US freezes immigrant visa processing for 75 countries, including Pakistan
- Immigrant visas to be suspended from Jan 21, tourist visas unaffected
- Move targets “public charge” concerns as Trump revives hard-line immigration rules
ISLAMABA: The United States will pause immigrant visa issuances for nationals of 75 countries, including Pakistan, from January 21, the State Department said on Thursday, as President Donald Trump presses ahead with a hard-line immigration agenda centered on financial self-sufficiency.
In an update published on its website, the State Department said it was conducting a comprehensive review of immigration policies to ensure that migrants from what it described as “high-risk” countries do not rely on public welfare in the United States or become a “public charge.”
“The State Department will pause immigrant visa processing from 75 countries whose migrants take welfare from the American people at unacceptable rates. The freeze will remain active until the US can ensure that new immigrants will not extract wealth from the American people,” the department said.
The pause applies specifically to immigrant visas, which are issued to people seeking permanent residence in the United States. The department said applicants from affected countries may still submit applications and attend interviews, but no immigrant visas will be issued during the suspension.
According to the State Department, the affected countries include Pakistan, Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Iran, Iraq, Egypt, Nigeria, Russia, Somalia, Brazil, Thailand and dozens of others across Asia, Africa, the Middle East, Europe and Latin America.
The department said tourist and other non-immigrant visas are not affected, and that no previously issued immigrant visas have been revoked. Dual nationals applying with a valid passport from a country not on the list are exempt from the pause.
The State Department did not indicate how long the visa pause would remain in effect, saying it would continue until its review of screening and vetting procedures is completed.
The announcement underscores the breadth of the Trump administration’s renewed immigration crackdown. Since returning to office last year, Trump has revived and expanded enforcement of the “public charge” provision of US immigration law, which allows authorities to deny entry to applicants deemed likely to rely on public benefits.
During his previous term, Trump imposed sweeping travel restrictions on several Muslim-majority countries, a policy widely referred to as a “Muslim ban,” which was challenged in courts before a revised version was upheld by the Supreme Court and later rescinded under former president Joe Biden.
The visa freeze also comes amid an intensifying domestic enforcement push. US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has expanded operations nationwide, drawing scrutiny over its tactics. Last week, an ICE agent shot and killed Renee Good, a US citizen, during a federal operation in Minneapolis, sparking protests and renewed debate over immigration enforcement under the Trump administration.
