Kurdish trader Mutaleb Khaibari shot dead by Iranian border forces near Baneh

Hengaw – Thursday, June 11, 2026

Mutaleb Khaibari, a Kurdish trader from Baneh, was shot and killed by Iranian border forces in the border areas of the county. He was not carrying any goods at the time he was targeted.

According to information obtained by the Hengaw Organization for Human Rights, forces of Iran’s Border Guard stationed in the Choman border region of Baneh opened fire on Khaibari from close range at dawn on Thursday, June 11, 2026. He was shot in the head without prior warning and died at the scene.

A source familiar with the incident told Hengaw: “Mutaleb Khaibari sustained gunfire by government forces despite not carrying any smuggled goods and merely being present in the border area. His body was transferred to Salah Aldin Hospital in Baneh, and authorities have so far refused to release it to his family.”

Khaibari was a resident of Saleh village in Baneh County. He was married and the father of two children. Like many residents of Kurdistan facing limited employment opportunities, he relied on work in border regions to support his family.

The continued targeting of Kurdish traders and kolbars by Iranian armed forces in the border regions of Kurdistan, often in violation of regulations governing the use of firearms and under conditions of near-total impunity, represents a serious violation of the right to life and fundamental human rights.