Deadly borders: 60+ Kurdish kolbars killed, 280+ injured since 2024

Shafaq News/ More than 60 Iranian kolbars have been killed and over 280 others injured since the beginning of 2024, while transporting goods in the border areas between Iranian Kurdistan and the Kurdistan Region of Iraq, according to the Hanna Human Rights Organization.

Kolbars are workers who transport goods across the borders of Iran, Iraq, Syria, and Turkiye, often through dangerous mountainous terrains.

In its report, the Iranian Kurdish organization revealed that the total number of kolbar deaths in 2024 reached 59, with 271 others injured. Among the fatalities, 41 were allegedly killed by direct gunfire from Iranian government forces, while 216 others were injured by direct fire from government troops. Four were killed by landmine explosions, and the rest died in natural accidents and road incidents.

According to the organization's statistics, 4 workers were killed and 13 others injured in the first three months of 2025. Two of the deaths were reportedly due to direct gunfire from Iranian forces, while the other two died from cold weather and landslides.