This article is more than 3 years old

This article is more than 3 years old

Ten Iranian border guards have been killed by Sunni militants in a cross-border attack on the frontier with Pakistan, according to the Tasnim news agency.

The militant group Jaish al-Adl, or the Army of Justice, claimed responsibility, the report said.

“Ten border guards of Mirjaveh county in Sistan-Baluchestan province were martyred in an ambush by the terrorists in the Pakistani border’s zero-point,” Tasnim said.

In a statement carried on state media, Iranian police said the guards were killed by long-range guns and “the Pakistani government bears the ultimate responsibility of the attack”.

The Sistan-Baluchestan province in south-east Iran has long been plagued by drug smuggling gangs and separatist militants. The population of the province is predominantly Sunni Muslim, while the majority of Iranians are Shias.

Jaish al-Adl is a Sunni militant group that has carried out several attacks on Iranian security forces with the aim of highlighting what they say is discrimination against Sunni Muslims and the Baluch ethnic group in the province.

The militants claimed responsibility for attacks that killed eight border guards in April 2015 and 14 border guards in October 2013.

