Commander of the Ground Forces of the IRGC: Two Members of Jaish al-Adl Arrested

On Thursday, July 3, the commander of the Ground Forces of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) stated that two individuals connected to an operational team of the Jaish al-Adl group, which was 'destroyed' last week in Khash, have been arrested, although one of them died due to severe injuries. According to the Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting (IRIB), Mohammad Pakpour, the commander of the IRGC Ground Forces, said at a conference on the role of tribes in the Great Jihad in Zahedan: 'Two members of the terrorist team that was destroyed last week in Khash by the provincial police forces have been arrested.' He added, 'One of these terrorists died due to the severity of his injuries after arrest, and the other is in the custody of the Quds Headquarters in Southeast Iran.' Pakpour did not provide further details about the clash and the arrest of these two Jaish al-Adl members. However, he mentioned that 'these individuals have confessed to the extensive dimensions of their crimes and the supportive role of Saudi Arabia and the United States in advancing the goals of this group, which will be communicated to the public in the future.' Saeed Montazer al-Mahdi, the spokesperson for the police, stated on June 24 that in a clash between police forces and members of Jaish al-Adl, five members of this group and one police soldier were killed. In this context, Hossein Rahimi, the police chief of Sistan and Baluchestan, also stated that four members of Jaish al-Adl were killed during these clashes, and the fifth victim was one of the three Jaish al-Adl members who managed to escape. The police chief added that the search for two other individuals continues. He reported that from this group, 'quantities of weapons and ammunition, explosive traps, about 60 kilograms of explosive materials, as well as books and pamphlets on bomb-making instructions and anti-religious books' were discovered. A local website also reported that the Jaish al-Adl team consisted of eight members. Last week, police officials stated that from the members of Jaish al-Adl, who 'intended to carry out terrorist and sabotage actions within the country's territory,' 'large quantities of weapons and explosives were discovered.' The operational area of the Jaish al-Adl group is in Sistan and Baluchestan province, and previous reports have indicated clashes between this group's forces and the military forces of the Islamic Republic in this province. In recent days, Iranian security officials have reported the arrest of 10 individuals in connection with 'one of the largest terrorist plots by Takfiri and Wahhabi groups' in the country. Mahmoud Alavi, Iran's Minister of Intelligence, stated that the detainees were caught in three border and central provinces by intelligence forces. According to him, these individuals 'had identified 50 explosive targets and had prepared explosives for some of the targets while others were in the process of preparation, logistics, and acquisition.' In this context, the head of the judiciary in Khuzestan also stated on Wednesday that some members of sabotage teams intending to enter the center of the country were killed in this province.