Photo Source: Aljazeera
Delhi, Jan 05: ISIS has claimed responsibility for the twin explosions in Iran that occurred during a ceremony at a cemetery. The blasts resulted in the death of over 100 people and left several others wounded. The incident took place in Kerman, a city located 820 kilometers from Tehran, where a crowd had gathered to commemorate the fourth death anniversary of General Qassem Soleimani, a senior military commander killed by a US drone in 2020. According to the Islamic State’s statement on its affiliate Telegram channels, two of its members detonated explosive belts in the crowd. The first explosion occurred around 3 pm, and as people tried to escape, a second bomb went off 20 minutes later near the Saheb al-Zaman Mosque. The Iranian government reported that most of the casualties resulted from the second bombing, adding to the chaos caused by the initial blast.
The attacks in Iran occurred on the same day that a prominent Hamas leader, Saleh al-Arouri, was reportedly killed in an Israeli drone strike in Lebanon. Reacting to the events in Kerman, Randhir Jaiswal, the spokesperson for the Ministry of External Affairs, expressed shock and sadness, extending solidarity with the government and people of Iran during this difficult time.