Sistan and Baluchestan Province

Sistan and Baluchestan Province (Persian: استان سيستان و بلوچستان‎‎, Ostān-e Sīstān-o Balūchestān) is one of the 31 provinces of Iran. It is in the southeast of the country, bordering Pakistan and Afghanistan and its capital is Zahedan.

The province is the largest in Iran, with an area of 181,785 km² and a population of 2.5 million. The counties of the province are Chabahar, Qasar-qand, Dalgan, Hirmand, Iranshahr, Khash, Konarak, Nikshahr, Saravan, Sarbaz, Soran, Zabol, Zaboli, Zahedan and Zehak.

The population comprises the Baluch who form a majority in the province, followed by the relatively large minority, the Sistani Persians. Smaller communities of Kurds (in the eastern highlands and near Iranshahr, the expatriate Brahui (on the borders between Iran and Pakistan), and other resident and itinerant ethnic groups such as the Gypsies are also found in the province.

Geography and culture

The province comprises two sections, Sistan in the north and Baluchestan in the south. The combined Sistan and Baluchestan province today accounts for one of the driest regions of Iran with a slight increase in rainfall from east to west, and an obvious rise in humidity in the coastal regions. The province is subject to seasonal winds from different directions, the most important of which are the 120-day wind of Sistan known as Levar, the Qousse wind, the seventh (Gav-kosh) wind, the Nambi or south wind, the Hooshak wind, the humid and seasonal winds of the Indian Ocean, the North or (Gurich) wind and the western (Gard) wind.

Balochistan, Pakistan

Balochistan (Balochi, Pashto, Urdu: بلوچِستان‎, Balōčistān, pronounced [bəloːt͡ʃɪst̪ɑːn]), is one of the four provinces of Pakistan, located in the southwestern region of the country. Its provincial capital and largest city is Quetta. It shares borders with Punjab and the Federally Administered Tribal Areas to the northeast, Sindh to the southeast, the Arabian Sea to the south, Iran to the west, and Afghanistan to the north.

Most of the province's inhabitants are Balochs, Pashtuns and Brahuis though there are smaller communities of Iranian Balochs, Hazaras, Sindhis, Punjabis, and other settlers such as the Uzbeks, and Turkmens. The name Balochistan means "the land of the Baloch" in many regional languages. Although largely underdeveloped, the provincial economy is dominated by natural resources, especially its natural gas fields, which supply the entire country. Gwadar Port also plays a significant role in the economic development of the province.

Balochistan is noted for its unique culture, extremely dry desert climate, and the Sulaiman Mountains.