“Terrorist attack” near Suleimani’s grave kills more than 100 people

Iranian state television reported two explosions 20 minutes apart during a ceremony at the cemetery where Soleimani is buried in the southeastern city of Kerman.

No individual or organization has yet claimed responsibility for the attack.

Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi condemned the “heinous and inhumane crime”. Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei has pledged to respond to the twin bombings.

“These evil criminals… should know that they will be dealt with from now on… and there will definitely be severe reactions,” Khamenei said in a statement, according to state media.

Several countries including Russia and Türkiye have condemned the attack. The UN Secretary-General has called for those responsible to be punished.

Iranian Health Minister Bahram Eynollahi said on state television that the death toll was 95, down from a previous report of 103, and said 211 others were injured.

Iran has repeatedly accused Israel of being behind attacks on individuals or areas of its territory – accusations that Israel has never confirmed or denied – but there is currently no indication that another country was behind the cemetery blasts.

White House spokesman John Kirby said the US government also had no information suggesting Israel was behind the attack.

An unnamed official told Iran's state media agency IRNA that “two explosive devices planted on the road leading to the Kerman Martyrs' Cemetery were detonated remotely by terrorists.”

Video of the bodies

Videos posted by Iranian state media showed scores of bodies lying on the street, with bystanders helping survivors and others leave the area of the blast.

“I heard a loud noise and felt pain in my back… After that, I couldn’t feel my legs,” an injured woman at a Kerman hospital told state television.

Rescue workers from the Iranian Red Crescent treated the injured at the cemetery, where hundreds of Iranians had gathered to commemorate the anniversary of Soleimani’s death. Some Iranian media outlets have suggested that the actual number of injured is much higher than reported.

World - “Terrorist attack” near Suleimani’s grave kills more than 100 people — Photo: Majid Asgaripour/WANA (West Asia News Agency) via REUTERS.

“There were terrible explosions here despite strict safety and security measures,” Reza Fallah, head of the Kerman Red Crescent Society, told state television. “The incident is still under investigation.”

State media later said the cemetery had been evacuated and closed until further notice. The Iranian government declared Thursday a day of national mourning.

Although government agencies have not made public accusations, senior commander of Iran's Quds Force, Esmail Qaani, said the attack was carried out by "agents of the Zionist regime (Israel) and the United States."

Tehran often accuses Israel and the United States, its two arch-enemies, of supporting militant groups fighting against Iran.

Iranian state television showed crowds gathering at a cemetery overnight, chanting slogans such as “Death to Israel” and “Death to America.”

A US State Department spokesman has confirmed that the US was not involved in the explosions in Iran on Wednesday and there is no reason to believe that Israel was involved.

Iran's foreign ministry said in a statement that it would use all international means to identify and bring to justice those behind the attack and their supporters. Meanwhile, President Raisi canceled a planned visit to Türkiye on Thursday.

Past attacks

In 2022, the Sunni Muslim militant group IS claimed responsibility for a deadly attack on a Shia mosque in Iran that killed 15 people.

Previous attacks the group has claimed responsibility for include a 2017 double bombing of the Iranian parliament and the mausoleum of the Islamic Republic's founder Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini. Baluchi militias and Arab separatist groups have also carried out attacks in Iran.

The US assassination of Soleimani on January 3, 2020 with a drone strike on Baghdad airport and Tehran's response by attacking two Iraqi military bases housing US troops brought Iran and the US to the brink of all-out conflict.

As the supreme commander of the Quds Force, the foreign arm of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), Soleimani carried out numerous clandestine operations abroad and was a key figure in Iran's long-running campaign to push US forces out of the Middle East.

Tensions between Iran and Israel, along with its ally the United States, reached a boiling point when Israel declared war on the Iran-backed Hamas organization in Gaza in response to a Hamas attack in southern Israel on October 7.

Yemen's Houthi militia has also attacked several ships it claims are linked to Israel in the Red Sea, one of the world's busiest shipping lanes.

US forces have also come under attack by Iran-backed militias in Iraq and Syria over Washington's support for Israel and have also carried out several airstrikes in response.

Nguyen Quang Minh (according to Reuters)

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