One Killed and One Injured in Clash Between IRGC and Armed Opposition in Kermanshah

A clash between the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and armed opposition forces in a border area of Kermanshah province resulted in one death and one injury. IRNA news agency reported the funeral of Kamran Ghaderpour, a 'conscription soldier', held in Mahabad on Friday, May 8, stating that he was killed on Thursday night in a confrontation with what the agency described as 'anti-revolutionary elements'. The report indicates that the clash occurred in the 'Shushmi Nosud' area at the border with Iraq in Kermanshah province. Meanwhile, the website 'Kurdpa' reported that an IRGC member named Alireza Rafiei was also injured in this clash. So far, none of the Kurdish opposition parties have published reports about this confrontation. The Islamic Republic refers to its armed opposition groups in western Iran, including Kurdish armed parties, as 'terrorist groups' or 'anti-revolutionary'. However, these groups claim that their armed struggle against the Islamic Republic is aimed at 'defending Kurdish rights'. Last year, there were multiple clashes between the armed Kurdish parties and the military forces of the Islamic Republic. The Democratic Party of Iranian Kurdistan announced on July 26, 2016, that it had increased its military presence in 'most areas' of Iranian Kurdistan 'on a larger scale and as part of a defensive tactic'. Following this, numerous reports emerged about clashes between this party's forces and the military forces of the Islamic Republic. Meanwhile, the Komala Party reported that in a clash with the IRGC on June 22, 2017, three of its members and several IRGC members were killed. Ten days later, news sources in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq reported that Iranian military forces shelled areas of this region, injuring three people. Subsequently, the autonomous government of the Kurdistan Region of Iraq summoned the Iranian consul in Erbil and protested against the shelling of these areas.