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Sistan and Baluchestan Province

Sistan and Baluchestan Province
استان سیستان و بلوچستان
Province
Ghal'eh Sab, Saravan.
Ghal'eh Sab, Saravan.
Map of Iran with Sistan and Baluchestan highlighted
Location of Sistan and Baluchestan within Iran
Coordinates: 29°29′33″N 60°52′01″E / 29.4924°N 60.8669°E / 29.4924; 60.8669Coordinates: 29°29′33″N 60°52′01″E / 29.4924°N 60.8669°E / 29.4924; 60.8669
Country  Iran
Capital Zahedan
Counties 18
Area
 • Total 181,785 km2 (70,188 sq mi)
Population (2016)
 • Total 2,775,014
 • Density 15/km2 (40/sq mi)
Time zone IRST (UTC+03:30)
 • Summer (DST) IRST (UTC+04:30)
Main language(s) Baluchi
Persian(Sistani dialect)

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.

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.


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