State media: More than 100 dead in bomb attack near grave of slain general in Iran
Soleimani was killed by the US military in Iraq on January 3, 2020. Wednesday's attack took place near the Saheb al-Saman mosque, where Soleimani's tomb is located.
Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi declared that there was "no doubt that the perpetrators of this cowardly act will soon be identified and punished for their heinous deed". The leadership in Tehran declared a day of mourning for Thursday. "Following the terrorist incident in Kerman, the government has declared tomorrow, Thursday, a day of public mourning throughout the country," it said on state television.
Shortly after the explosions, the deputy governor of Kerman, Rahman Jalali, spoke of a "terrorist attack". The Iranian news agency Tasnim reported, citing informed sources, that "two bags of bombs" had exploded. The explosive devices were "apparently detonated by remote control".
The Isna news agency quoted the mayor of Kerman, Said Tabrisi, as saying that the bombs had exploded about ten minutes apart. Initially, no one claimed responsibility.
An eyewitness told Isna that on the way to the cemetery, a car suddenly stopped behind the crowd and a garbage can containing a bomb exploded. He only heard the sound of the explosion and saw people falling to the ground.
Video footage published on online networks showed the crowd trying to flee while security forces cordoned off the area. Images from state television showed several ambulances and rescue workers. According to the Iranian Red Crescent, three paramedics were among the dead.
Russian President Vladimir Putin condemned "terrorism in all its forms in the strongest possible terms". "The murder of peaceful people visiting a cemetery is shocking in its cruelty and cynicism," Putin said in a letter to Raisi and Iran's spiritual leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, according to the Kremlin. Moscow and Tehran had recently strengthened their economic and political relations.
The bombing occurred against the backdrop of heightened tensions in the Middle East: on Tuesday, the deputy head of the Iran-backed Islamist Hamas, Saleh al-Aruri, was killed in a drone attack in a southern suburb of the Lebanese capital Beirut, which was attributed to Israel.
Soleimani was killed four years ago in a drone strike near Baghdad ordered by then US President Donald Trump. The general commanded the Al-Quds Brigades, the branch of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards responsible for foreign missions, and was considered a hero of the Iran-Iraq war in his home country.
According to observers, Soleimani was one of the most important masterminds in the region - he is credited with Iran's political and military direction in Syria, Iraq and Yemen. Trump said at the time that he had ordered the drone strike in response to a series of attacks on US bases in Iraq.
In the days following his death, millions gathered in Iran to mourn the general. A poll published in 2018 showed that Soleimani had an 83% approval rating in Iran - higher than that of the president at the time.
In July 2023, the Iranian Ministry of Intelligence declared that it had dismantled an "espionage organization with ties to Israel", according to the official news agency Irna. This organization had planned "terrorist operations", including an explosion at Soleimani's grave.
kas/yb
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Source: www.stern.de
