SULAIMANI (ESTA) — Iranian forces shot dead two Kurdish Kolbars (porters) in northwestern Iran, a watchdog said on Thursday.
Hengaw Organization for Human Rights said Iranian forces opened fire at a number of Kolbars in the heights of Sardasht county on Wednesday.
One Kolbar was killed and another was wounded in the area, said Hengaw, which monitors human rights abuses in Iranian Kurdistan.
The organization added that another Kolbar, 33, was killed by Iranian forces in Baneh.
Kolbars carry goods across the mountainous border between Iran, Iraq and Turkey on their backs. They frequently come under fire from Iranian border guards.
Hengaw said in a report on Monday that at least seven Kolbars were shot dead and eight others were injured in January.
Fifty-nine Kolbars died or were killed by Iranian security forces and 181 others were wounded in 2020, according to the Hengaw organization.
