The Kurdistan Human Rights Network (KHRN) reported that Hossein Kamalian, a 37-year-old kolbar, was killed and Fardin Ghalash seriously injured after being shot by Iranian border guards in the border areas of Piranshahr, West Azerbaijan Province, on 7 October.

Kamalian, from Piranshahr, died after border guards opened fire at close range and without warning on a group of kolbars in the mountainous area of Delavan, according to KHRN.

The kolbar, who was hit in the leg, was also beaten with rifle butts by the border guards. He died of his injuries after being taken to a medical centre in Piranshahr.

Ghalash was also seriously injured in the same incident and was transferred to medical facilities in Orumiyeh for treatment.

Eastern Kurdistan has descended deeper into poverty through the years due to deliberate policies by the Iranian regime and stands out as one of the poorest regions in Iran. Compared to other regions, the area has seen significantly less investment and development has been deliberately curbed. Agriculture and industry weren’t allowed to develop, and as a result, unemployment rose to the highest in Iran.

Faced with policies of discrimination, oppression and impoverishment, carrying smuggled goods is not a choice but a must for survival.

Kolbar comes from the Kurdish words, “kol” (back) and “bar” (load). Kolbars make their living carrying loads along the perilous borderline. Their loads include cigarettes, mobile phones, clothes, housewares, tea and seldomly alcohol. They walk through dangerous terrain to continue this trade between Southern and Eastern Kurdistan. The goods they bring are sold at high prices in Tehran, but the kolbars who risk their lives for them are paid very modestly.

The intermediaries who take the deliveries and find buyers in cities are called kasibkars. Kolbars and kasibkars range from 13 to 70 years old. Some only finished elementary school, while others are university graduates. They carry loads, because they can’t find any other employment.