People are seen after an explosion at Kerman, Iran on Wednesday. Photo credit: AP
BY Claire Mom
At least 103 persons have been confirmed dead after two bombs detonated near the burial site of Qasem Soleimani, assassinated military commander.
The Islamic Republic News Agency (IRNA) reports that the first blast took place 700 meters away from Soleimani’s grave while the second happened about a kilometre away.
The bombs which exploded 20 minutes apart, according to Ahmad Vahid, Iran’s interior minister, happened on Wednesday afternoon when hundreds of people gathered to honour the slain military commander’s fourth death anniversary in Kerman.
Vahidi said most of the fatalities had been caused by the second explosion.
Soleiman was killed in 2020 by a United States airstrike at the Baghdad International Airport following former President Donald Trump’s orders to the military.
The Pentagon said it was to prevent future Iranian attack plans.
Videos posted on Iranian state media showed large crowds running in the area after the explosion while ambulances pushed through the crowds, transporting bloodied bodies in Kerman.
Reza Fallah, head of the province Red Crescent, told IRNA that some 141 injured people are receiving treatments at hospitals so far.
No group has claimed responsibility for the attacks.
Vahidi labelled the explosions as “terrorist attacks” which would “be followed by a firm and destructive response in the shortest time possible of the security and military forces”.
The blast comes amid heightened tensions in the Middle East as Israel’s war with Hamas, the Iran-backed Palestinian militant group, in Gaza creeps into its third month.
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