Balochistan: Iranian Forces Destroy Baloch Homes and Assault Women and Children

DOZZAAP (ZAHEDAN): January 7, 2025, Iranian military forces raided the village of Darp in the Rimdan district of Chabahar, destroying the homes of Baloch citizens and assaulting women and children.

According to reports from the Baloch Activists Campaign, around 50 to 60 military personnel stormed the village at 2 a.m. on January 7. They forcibly removed women and children from their homes, assaulting them in the process, and left them stranded outside.

A local resident described the events, saying, “The armed military forces beat the women and children before demolishing our homes. They even emptied the kitchen and destroyed our belongings.”

Another local, whose home was also destroyed, expressed their shock: “We are native to this land, with our orchards and farmland passed down through generations. Yet, the military raided our homes in the dead of night, assaulting our women and children. Despite the injuries, the military did not allow an ambulance to come in to take the wounded to the hospital.”

This raid is part of the broader context of the Islamic Republic’s “Makran Coastal Development” project, which aims to alter the demographic makeup of Balochistan’s coastal regions. This project has led to the destruction of homes and confiscation of land from the Baloch people.

After reports that Iran plans to move its capital to the southern coastal areas of Balochistan, these acts of violence and land seizures have intensified, threatening the Baloch people’s right to remain in their ancestral lands.

The Baloch Activists Campaign’s 2024 annual report reveals that at least 30 instances of the destruction of Baloch homes have been reported across Sistan and Balochistan, with military forces also demolishing three Sunni mosques and schools, as well as confiscating Baloch citizens’ property.