The Iranian police have seized 697 kg of illicit drugs and killed six armed smugglers in an operation in the southern province of Kerman, provincial police chief Abdolreza Nazeri said on Tuesday. Additionally, three assault rifles and large quantities of ammunition were discovered from the smugglers, Nazeri was quoted as saying by state TV. In the operation, one police officer was killed and five others were injured by the armed drug traffickers, he added. Iran has been suffering from drug trafficking given its location at the crossroads of international drug smuggling from Afghanistan to Europe. Read: Woman held for drug trafficking in DU Over the past few decades, Iran's eastern and southeastern borders have seen deadly clashes between Iranian security forces and armed drug smugglers. Unx4 Armed assailants kill 6 at Mexico rehab center.

Flash floods in Iran’s drought-stricken southern Fars province have killed at least 21 people, state television said Saturday. Heavy rains swelled the Roudbal river by the city of Estahban, according to the city’s governor Yousef Karegar. Karegar said rescue teams had saved 55 people who were trapped by the flash flooding, but at least six people were still missing. Flooding hit more than 10 villages in the province, he added. Iran’s interior minister, Ahmad Vahidi, shared his condolences with the families of the flood victims, state television later reported. Iran’s meteorology department had warned about possibly heavy seasonal rainfall across the country that is facing a decades-long drought blamed on climate change. The dangers of flash flooding have also been exacerbated by the widespread construction of buildings and roads near riverbeds. Also read: No improvement in Sylhet's flood situation In March 2018, a flash flood in Fars province caused the death of 44 people.