Kolbar Nasih Khodaei seriously injured after border forces open fire in Baneh

Hengaw – Thursday, June 11, 2026

Nasih Khodaei, a Kurdish kolbar from Baneh, was seriously injured after Iranian border forces opened fire on a group of kolbars in the county’s border areas.

According to information received by Hengaw Organization for Human Rights, border forces stationed in the Surkiw border area of Baneh opened fire on a group of kolbars at close range and without prior warning in the early hours of Thursday, June 11, 2026. Khodaei, 29, was struck in the leg and sustained serious injuries.

A source familiar with the incident told Hengaw: “Nasih Khodaei suffered severe injuries and significant blood loss after being shot by government forces. He was immediately taken by local residents and fellow kolbars to Salahaddin Ayyubi Hospital in Baneh for emergency treatment and remains under medical care.”

Khodaei is married and the father of one child. Like many residents of Kurdistan facing a lack of stable employment opportunities, he has been compelled to work as a kolbar to support his family.