Four Kurdish rebels killed by Iranian forces

The four were ambushed and killed near the city of Sardasht in the West Azerbaijan province, the TV report said, dpa reported.

The four had last December killed three Iranian policemen in the same area, the report claimed.

Iranian Kurds, who are estimated to number around 7 million, mainly live in the provinces of West Azerbaijan, Kermanshah and Kurdistan which border Turkey and northern Iraq.

Kurds in Iran have been at odds with the government in Tehran for decades for trying to gain autonomy in Kurdish-populated provinces and form an alliance with Kurds in Turkey, Iraq and Syria.

The struggles have led to bloody clashes in all four countries but in Iran, Kurds have integrated into Iranian society. They have some cultural autonomy but are, for example, obliged to learn Persian at school.

Kurds are Sunni Muslims, while the majority of the Iranian population are Shiites. Sunnis make up about 10 per cent of Iran's population.

/Trend News/