GW Discourse

In the latest attack of a long-running conflict, Baluch terrorist group Jundallah killed dozens  of Iranians, including five (or more) senior officers in the Iranian Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC, or Pasdaran). Jundallah’s previous record includes an assassination attempt on Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, killing a busload of IRGC troops in Zahedan in 2007, and bombing a mosque in the same border city. The Iranian government has blamed the US, Britain, Pakistan, and Israel for such attacks.

Courtesy presstv.ir

Who are the Baluch? The population of 15 million spans the intersection of the Afghan, Iranian, and Pakistani borders, and like the Kurds, they are stateless and marginalized in each country. Baluch conflict has been persistent in Pakistan since 1948, and in Iran they have been supported by Arab powers (especially Ba’athist Iraq) for as much time. With the rise of the Baluch Liberation Army in Pakistan in 2000, Islamabad has for its part blamed India as the source of Baluch insurgency.

The question is who supports them now? Jundallah is a Sunni group, and there exists another of the same name which only operates in Pakistan, which makes for some confusion. This militant group is still accused of operating from Pakistan, and may have links with the Pakistani Taliban (especially since Quetta, in Baluchistan province, is a major Taliban outpost) and al Qaeda. Does the infamous Pakistani ISI play a role? While supporting the Baluch insurgency in Iran and fighting it at home seems contradictory, Iran and Iraq pursued such policies with Kurdish groups during their war against each other. Al Qaeda may also contribute to the increasing intensity of Jundallah’s attacks, as their leadership has spoken of expanding conflict to more countries with the help of other militants. The answer is elusive.

Iran, true to form, has accused the US and UK of supporting Jundallah. The Farsi-language service of Voice of America has previously featured Jundallah’s leader, Abdul Malik Rigi, which caused a stir in Iran. Seymour Hersh, among others, accused Bush of providing hundreds of millions to Jundallah and other Iranian separatist groups. While these claims appear sensationalist, widespread acceptance of these beliefs in Iran will likely complicate the already troubled P5+1 talks.