Sunni cleric assassinated by unidentified gunmen in southeast Iran

A Sunni cleric has been assassinated in the southeastern Iranian city of Zahedan.

Zahedan Governor Jamshid Rokhshani Nasab told IRNA on Monday that Molavi Yousef Gorgij, a Sunni prayer leader in the city, was assassinated by unidentified gunmen earlier in the day.

Rokhshani Nasab added that the attack was carried out outside the cleric’s home.

According to the governor, Gorgij had been active in efforts to fight divisive elements and Zionist mercenaries.

No group or individual has claimed responsibility for the assassination.

IRGC condemns assassination of Kurdish cleric by 'Zionist-American separatists'

The IRGC has condemned the killing of a Kurdish cleric in West Azarbaijan, blaming separatist groups for the attack and warning that such violence seeks to undermine Shia-Sunni unity.

In a statement, the Quds Base of the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) Ground Forces said the cleric was martyred following a series of defeats suffered by terrorist groups and the dismantling of several terrorist cells in Sistan and Baluchestan Province.

It added that “traitorous terrorist groups” assassinated Gorgij, who was an influential figure in fostering unity between Shia and Sunni Muslims in the province and a widely respected cleric.

According to the statement, Gorgij was killed outside his home on Monday afternoon in a “terrorist attack” carried out by “enemies of unity”.

The assassination comes five days after Kurdish cleric Mamosta Mohammad Nozhati was killed in a terrorist attack in Iran’s western province of West Azarbaijan.

In a statement issued following Nozhati’s death on Wednesday, the IRGC condemned the assassination, blaming “Zionist-American separatist groups” for the attack.

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