UPDATE - Iran shells mountainous areas of Iraq’s Kurdish region

*UPDATES WITH EVACUATION OF FOUR VILLAGES

ERBIL, Iraq (AA) – Iranian artillery batteries early Thursday shelled mountainous areas of Erbil province in northern Iraq’s semi-autonomous Kurdish region, according to a local official.

"In the early hours [of Thursday], Iran began shelling mountainous areas of Erbil’s Sidekan district," Kavran Kerim, Sidekan’s district governor, told Anadolu Agency.

Kerim said the "intense" artillery bombardment had forced many local residents to flee their homes in search of safety, adding that four villages located in Sidekan district were evacuated amid intense shelling.

The Erbil-based Rudaw media agency reported that journalist Bahtiyar Kadir -- who had been covering developments in the area -- had been injured by the shelling and taken to a nearby medical facility.

In June, Peshmerga forces affiliated with the Democratic Party of Iranian Kurdistan staged a series of attacks in Iran’s Azerbaijan and Kurdistan provinces from northern Iraq’s Kurdish region.

The Iranian army responded on June 26 by shelling positions in Erbil, injuring five civilians, including three children.