Kerman bombings
Part of assassination and terrorism in Iran
The site of the bombings on the route towards the Martyrs' Cemetery with the dome of the Saheb al-Zaman mosque visible in the background
LocationKerman, Iran
Date3 January 2024
15:50–16:00 IRST (UTC+03:30)
Attack type
Bombing
Deaths94[1]
Injured284[2]
PerpetratorsIslamic State – Khorasan Province[3]
Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei meeting with Qasem Soleimani's family two days before the bombings.[4][5]

On 3 January 2024, a commemorative ceremony marking the assassination of Qasem Soleimani at his grave in eastern Kerman, Iran, was attacked by two bomb explosions. The attacks killed at least 94 people,[1] and injured 284 others.[2][6] The Iranian government declared the bombings a terrorist attack,[7] making it the deadliest such incident in the country since the Cinema Rex attack of 1978.[8] On the following day, the Islamic State, a Sunni Muslim extremist group, claimed responsibility for the attack in the Shiite Muslim dominated country.[9] According to Reuters, the United States Intelligence Community concluded that the attack was perpetrated by the Afghanistan branch of the Islamic State, ISIS-K.[3]

Background

The grave of Qasem Soleimani at the Martyrs' Cemetery in Kerman, 2021

On 3 January 2020 General Qasem Soleimani was killed by a United States drone strike in Iraq. Soleimani was the commander of the Quds Force of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC). Soleimani held a position of significant influence in Iran, widely considered the second most powerful figure in the country after Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. As leader of the Quds Force, the overseas operations arm of the IRGC, he played a key role in shaping Iranian policy across the region. Soleimani was responsible for overseeing clandestine missions and providing guidance, funding, weapons, intelligence, and logistical support to allied governments and armed groups, including Hamas and Hezbollah.[7][10]

During the burial procession for Soleimani in Kerman on 7 January 2020, a stampede occurred, killing at least 50 mourners and causing injuries to over 200 individuals.[7] The 2024 attack came amidst heightened tensions in the Middle East following the 2023 Israel–Hamas war and its spillover conflicts. A day before the bombings, an Israeli drone strike in Lebanon killed Hamas's deputy leader Saleh al-Arouri,[7] while a week prior, an Israeli airstrike killed Iranian general Sayyed Razi Mousavi in Syria.[11] Into the 2020s, the Islamic State and other Sunni extremist groups have launched similar attacks in the Shiite-majority country, including a mass shooting that killed 13 people in Shiraz in 2022.[12]

Bombings

The twin explosions struck a procession going towards Soleimani's grave in the Golzar Shohada (Garden of Martyrs) cemetery,[13] around the Saheb al-Zaman mosque, to commemorate the fourth anniversary of his death.[7] The first explosion occurred 700 metres from Soleimani's grave near a parking lot, while the second occurred one kilometre away at Shohada Street, where many had fled.[14][15] The explosives were placed in such a manner as to prevent their detection at the security gates.[16] The explosions occurred between 10 and 20 minutes apart.[17][18]

According to Iranian media reports, the attack was carried out using two briefcase bombs placed at the entrance[16] that were detonated remotely. A witness said one of the bombs was placed inside a trash bin.[19] Another bomb was reportedly placed inside a car.[20] However, the state news agency IRNA reported on 4 January that investigators suspected that the attacks were carried out by suicide bombers.[21] The deputy governor of Kerman province said the incident was a terrorist attack.[7][10][22]

At least 94 people were killed[1] and at least another 284 were injured, 27 of them critically.[7][14] The dead included 23 students,[23] 14 Afghan nationals[1] and three paramedics who responded to the site of the first explosion and were caught in the second blast.[19] Most of the casualties were believed to have been caused by the second explosion.[7][12] Several of the injured were trampled in the panic that followed the explosions.[24] Early reports quoting Iranian officials put the death toll at 103, but authorities later revised the count down to 89.[25]

Aftermath

Iranian state TV showed Red Crescent rescuers assisting injured individuals at the ceremony. Several Iranian news agencies reported a higher count of wounded individuals. Reza Fallah, the head of the provincial Red Crescent, stated that their rapid response teams were evacuating the injured, but faced challenges due to waves of crowds obstructing roads.[26] Hospitals in Kerman and surrounding areas were placed on alert to treat victims.[13]

In the evening following the explosion, crowds gathered at the Golzar Shohada cemetery chanting "Death to Israel" and "Death to America".[27]

A mass funeral for the victims of the attack was held at the Emam Ali mosque in Kerman on 5 January, with Iranian president Ebrahim Raisi and IRGC commander Hossein Salami in attendance. On the same day, authorities called for mass rallies against the bombings following the funerals and Friday prayers.[25][28]

Two days after the attack, Iran's Ministry of Interior ordered walls to be built on its borders with Afghanistan and Pakistan.[29][30]

Reactions

Domestic

Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the supreme leader of Iran, pledged a "hard response" to the attack and declared that those responsible "will be the definite target of repression and just punishment from now on".[31]

Iranian clerics and grand Ayatollahs vehemently condemned the bombings and urged severe punishment for the perpetrators.[32]

Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi cancelled a scheduled visit to Turkey and declared a national day of mourning for the victims of the attacks on 4 January.[33][14] Interior Minister Ahmad Vahidi vowed an imminent response for the responsible parties.[34] In his visit to the scene, FARAJA head Brigadier General Ahmad-Reza Radan vowed to uproot terrorists.[35] Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, the speaker of the Islamic Consultative Assembly urged authorities to identify those behind the attacks.[36]

Soleimani's daughter Zeinab condemned the attacks and expressed hope that "the perpetrators of the crime will be identified and punished for their actions".[27]

International

Countries

Russian president Vladimir Putin expressed condolences to the victims of the attacks, calling it "shocking in cruelty and cynicism".[37] Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdoğan expressed his condolences to the "friendly and brotherly" people of Iran via a social media post.[38] Pope Francis issued a telegram expressing his deep sadness over the "loss of life".[25]

Pakistan's Foreign Minister Jalil Abbas Jilani strongly condemned "inhuman terrorist attacks" and said "Pakistan stands in solidarity with Iran at this hour of grief".[39] Syria, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates expressed condemnation of the attack.[40] The foreign ministries of Afghanistan,[41] Iraq,[42] Armenia,[43] Azerbaijan[44] and India[45] also expressed support for the Iranian people as well.[42] North Korean leader Kim Jong-un expressed support to Iran and condemned the bombings.[46]

Supranational organizations

The United Nations and the European Union also condemned the attack.[42]

Non-state entities

The leader of Hezbollah, Hassan Nasrallah, said the victims of the bombings were "martyrs who died on the same road, cause and battle that was led by" Soleimani.[7] The Houthi movement in Yemen also condemned the attacks, calling the "criminal bombings" an "extension of all the crimes that attempted to undermine the Islamic Republic, its role in confronting global arrogance, its adoption of the nation's central cause, and its support for the resistance forces in Palestine and Lebanon."[42]

Responsibility

On 4 January the Islamic State claimed responsibility for the attack in a statement posted on Telegram.[9] It later released images on its news outlet Amaq showing two masked individuals whom it claimed were brothers who carried out the attack as suicide bombers.[47][20] Based on U.S. intelligence assessments, the attack was executed by the Afghanistan branch of the Islamic State, known as ISIS–K.[3]

Prior to Islamic State's claim of responsibility, Iranian president Ebrahim Raisi blamed Israel for the attack.[48] Vice President Mohammad Mokhber and Expediency Discernment Council member General Mohsen Rezaee also blamed Israel for the bombings.[49][50] Quds Force commander Esmail Qaani claimed that the perpetrators were "supplied by the United States and the Zionist regime".[51] The United States said there is no reason to believe Israel was involved in the bombing,[52] and rejected suggestions of US involvement, calling such allegations "ridiculous", and expressed its sympathies towards the victims.[42] Asked for comment regarding the bombings, Israel Defense Forces spokesperson Daniel Hagari said it was "focused on the combat with Hamas".[27]

Despite the Islamic State's claims of responsibility for the attacks, Iranian officials continued to accuse the United States and Israel of involvement in the attacks, with IRGC commanding general Hossein Salami saying that the group "has disappeared" and that its members "only act as mercenaries" for American and Israeli interests on 5 January.[53] Authorities later arrested two people on suspicion of providing support to the suspected suicide bombers[54] and arrested a total of 35 people who were believed to have been involved in the attack.[1]

One of the suicide bombers was identified as a citizen of Tajikistan.[55] On 11 January, the Iranian intelligence ministry said it had identified the mastermind of the attacks as a Tajikistani national known by his alias Abdollah Tajiki, who illegally entered Iran through its southeastern border in December 2023 and manufactured the bombs used in the attacks before leaving the country on 1 January.[56] It also identified one of the bombers as a 24-year old Tajikistani and Israeli national surnamed Bozrov, who was trained by Islamic State in Afghanistan before entering Iran through its southeastern border.[1]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Iran identifies alleged bomb-maker behind last week's IS twin suicide attack that killed dozens". Associated Press. 6 January 2024. Archived from the original on 11 January 2024. Retrieved 11 January 2024.
  2. 1 2 "Iran says at least 84 were killed in blasts at a ceremony honoring slain general". The Washington Post. 4 January 2024. Archived from the original on 4 January 2024. Retrieved 4 January 2024.
  3. 1 2 3 Landay, Jonathan; Holland, Steve (5 January 2024). "Exclusive: US intelligence confirms Islamic State's Afghanistan branch behind Iran blasts -sources". Reuters. Retrieved 5 January 2024.
  4. ↑ "واکنش‌های گسترده به ادعای خامنه‌ای درباره «حرف خدا» از «زبان» او «دیکتاتور» دیگر کنترلی بر خود ندارد" [Wide reactions to Khamenei's claim about the 'word of God' from his 'language': the 'dictator' no longer has control over himself] (in Persian). 2 January 2024. Archived from the original on 2 January 2024. Retrieved 3 January 2024.
  5. ↑ "Martyr of Quds – Khamenei.ir". Archived from the original on 3 January 2024. Retrieved 3 January 2024.
  6. ↑ Yee, Vivian; Fassihi, Farnaz (3 January 2024). "Bombing in Iran Kills Over 100, Sowing Confusion and Speculation". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 3 January 2024. Retrieved 3 January 2024.
  7. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 "Twin bomb blasts near Iran general Qasem Soleimani's tomb kill 73 – state TV". BBC News. 3 January 2024. Archived from the original on 3 January 2024. Retrieved 3 January 2024.
  8. ↑ "Iran blames Israel, US for deadly blasts near grave of Guards general Soleimani". 3 January 2024. Archived from the original on 3 January 2024. Retrieved 3 January 2024.
  9. 1 2 "Islamic State claims responsibility for deadly Iran attack, Tehran vows revenge". Reuters. 4 January 2024. Retrieved 4 January 2024.
  10. 1 2 "Iran says at least 73 killed in 'terror' blasts near grave of IRGC general Soleimani". Times of Israel. 3 January 2024. Archived from the original on 3 January 2024. Retrieved 3 January 2024.
  11. ↑ "Israeli strike in Syria kills Iranian commander, Iran says". 25 December 2023. Archived from the original on 1 January 2024. Retrieved 4 January 2024.
  12. 1 2 "Iran says at least 103 people killed, 141 wounded in blasts at ceremony honoring slain general". Associated Press. 3 January 2024. Archived from the original on 3 January 2024. Retrieved 3 January 2024.
  13. 1 2 "Over 100 dead in blasts at memorial for assassinated Iranian commander". The Guardian. 3 January 2024. Archived from the original on 3 January 2024. Retrieved 3 January 2024.
  14. 1 2 3 "Iran says at least 103 people killed, 211 wounded in bombing at ceremony honoring slain general". Associated Press. 3 January 2024. Archived from the original on 3 January 2024. Retrieved 3 January 2024.
  15. ↑ "Iran: Deadly blasts near grave of slain Qassem Soleimani". dw.com. Archived from the original on 3 January 2024. Retrieved 3 January 2024. "We are deeply saddened by the many deaths in today's explosions in #Kerman, including many children," Germany's Foreign Ministry wrote on Wednesday on X, formerly Twitter.
  16. 1 2 "More than 100 killed in Iran blasts near Soleimani's tomb during ceremony". Al Jazeera. 3 January 2024. Archived from the original on 3 January 2024. Retrieved 3 January 2024.
  17. ↑ "Bombs kill 73 at Iran commemorations for slain general: state media". France 24. 3 January 2024. Archived from the original on 3 January 2024. Retrieved 3 January 2024.
  18. ↑ "Iran says at least 84 were killed in blasts at a ceremony honoring slain general". Associated Press. 3 January 2024. Archived from the original on 3 January 2024. Retrieved 3 January 2024.
  19. 1 2 "Bombs kill 103 at Iran memorial for slain general: state media". France 24. 3 January 2024. Archived from the original on 3 January 2024. Retrieved 3 January 2024.
  20. 1 2 "ISIS claims responsibility for deadliest attack in Iran since 1979 revolution". CNN. 4 January 2024. Archived from the original on 5 January 2024. Retrieved 5 January 2024.
  21. ↑ "Iran suspects suicide bombers carried out attack on commemoration for slain general that killed 84". Associated Press. 4 January 2024. Archived from the original on 7 January 2024. Retrieved 4 January 2024.
  22. ↑ "Iranian official declares explosion near Soleimani's tomb was a 'terrorist attack'". i24 News. 3 January 2024. Archived from the original on 3 January 2024. Retrieved 3 January 2024.
  23. ↑ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 9 January 2024. Retrieved 9 January 2024.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  24. ↑ "Blasts reported as Iran commemorates assassinated general Soleimani". Al Jazeera. 3 January 2024. Archived from the original on 3 January 2024. Retrieved 3 January 2024.
  25. 1 2 3 "Iran mourns those slain in Islamic State-claimed suicide blasts as death toll rises to 89". Associated Press. 5 January 2024. Archived from the original on 5 January 2024. Retrieved 5 January 2024.
  26. ↑ "Dozens killed in 'terrorist attacks' near tomb of Iranian Guards' Soleimani". Reuters. 3 January 2024. Retrieved 3 January 2024.
  27. 1 2 3 "Iran blames Israel, US for deadly blasts near grave of Guards general Soleimani". France 24. 3 January 2024. Archived from the original on 3 January 2024. Retrieved 4 January 2024.
  28. ↑ "Iran Lays To Rest Victims Of IS Twin Bombings". Barron's. 3 January 2024. Archived from the original on 6 January 2024. Retrieved 5 January 2024.
  29. ↑ "وزیر داخله جمهوری اسلامی از اجرایی شدن طرح انسداد مرز ایران با افغانستان خبر داد". 6 January 2024. Archived from the original on 6 January 2024. Retrieved 6 January 2024.
  30. ↑ "طرح انسداد مرز های ایران با افغانستان و پاکستان؛ آیا این شیوه به تامین امنیت کمک میکند؟". Archived from the original on 6 January 2024. Retrieved 6 January 2024.
  31. ↑ Leader of the Revolution: Criminals should know that from now on they will be the target of repression and fair punishment Archived 4 January 2024 at the Wayback Machine Iranian Students' News Agency Retrieved 3 January 2024
  32. ↑ "Iran's ulema, top clerics slam Kerman terrorist attacks". The Iran Project. 5 January 2024. Archived from the original on 6 January 2024. Retrieved 6 January 2024.
  33. ↑ "Confusion, speculation in Iran after twin blasts kill more than 80 people". Al Jazeera. 4 January 2024. Archived from the original on 4 January 2024. Retrieved 4 January 2024.
  34. ↑ "Iran Vows Response After Explosions Kill More Than 100 Near Ceremony For Slain General". Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty. Archived from the original on 3 January 2024. Retrieved 3 January 2024.
  35. ↑ "سردار رادان در واکنش به حمله تروریستی کرمان: ریشه ترور را می‌سوزانیم" [Sardar Radan in response to the terrorist attack in Kerman: We burn the root of terror] (in Persian). 3 January 2024. Archived from the original on 4 January 2024. Retrieved 3 January 2024.
  36. ↑ "قالیباف: نهادهای امنیتی و انتظامی با جدیت عاملان و آمران حادثه خونین کرمان را شناسایی کنند" [Qalibaf: Security and law enforcement institutions should seriously identify the perpetrators and leaders of the bloody incident in Kerman]. ISNA (in Persian). 3 January 2024. Retrieved 5 January 2024.
  37. ↑ "Deadly blasts rock ceremony for slain Iranian general Soleimani". France 24. 3 January 2024. Archived from the original on 3 January 2024. Retrieved 3 January 2024.
  38. ↑ "Türkiye expresses condolence upon the deadly terrorist attack in Iran". TRT. 3 January 2024. Archived from the original on 3 January 2024. Retrieved 3 January 2024.
  39. ↑ "Pakistan condemns 'inhuman terrorist attacks' in Iran as death toll surges past 100". Arab News.pk. 3 January 2024. Archived from the original on 3 January 2024. Retrieved 3 January 2024.
  40. ↑ "Iran Revises Down Blasts Death Toll To 84". Barron's. 4 January 2024. Archived from the original on 4 January 2024. Retrieved 4 January 2024.
  41. ↑ "وزارت امور خارجه افغانستان وقوع دو انفجار در ایران را محکوم کرد" [The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Afghanistan condemned two explosions in Iran] (in Persian). Bakhtar News Agency. 4 January 2024. Archived from the original on 5 January 2024. Retrieved 4 January 2024.
  42. 1 2 3 4 5 "'Heinous': World reacts to twin blasts that kill dozens in Iran". Al Jazeera. 3 January 2024. Archived from the original on 3 January 2024. Retrieved 3 January 2024.
  43. ↑ @MFAofArmenia (3 January 2024). "Shocked by the news of explosions in Kerman city #Iran🇮🇷, causing death over 100 innocent civilians. Our thoughts and prayers are with the casualties and their families. @IRIMFA_EN" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  44. ↑ "Azerbaijan MFA condemns terror attack in Iran, extends condolences". Apa.az. Archived from the original on 4 January 2024. Retrieved 3 January 2024.
  45. ↑ "Transcript of Weekly Media Briefing by the Official Spokesperson (January 04, 2024)". Ministry of External Affairs. 4 January 2024. Retrieved 5 January 2024.
  46. ↑ "Kim Jong-un sends sympathy messages to Iran, Japan: KCNA". The Korea Times. 6 January 2025. Archived from the original on 6 January 2024. Retrieved 6 January 2024.
  47. ↑ "IS claims responsibility for deadly Iran bombings that killed 84". BBC. 4 January 2024. Archived from the original on 5 January 2024. Retrieved 5 January 2024.
  48. ↑ "واکنش رئیسی به جنایت تروریستی کرمان؛ «بدانید در مقابل این جنایت هولناک هزینه سختی خواهید داد»" [Raisi's reaction to Kerman's terrorist crime; "Know that you will pay a heavy price for this horrible crime"]. SNN.IR (in Persian). 3 January 2024. Archived from the original on 4 January 2024. Retrieved 3 January 2024.
  49. ↑ "واکنش معاون اول رئیسی به حادثه تروریستی کرمان/ محسن رضایی: منتظر پایانِ اسرائیل باشید/ کوثری: انتقام می‌گیریم – خبرآنلاین" [Raisi's first deputy's reaction to the terrorist incident in Kerman – Mohsen Rezaei: Wait for the end of Israel/Kowshari: We will take revenge]. Archived from the original on 3 January 2024. Retrieved 3 January 2024.
  50. ↑ "واکنش مهم به اقدام تروریستی کرمان | پایان اسرائیل ؛ منتظر باشید! – همشهری آنلاین" [An important response to the terrorist act of Kerman | The end of Israel; wait! – Online citizenship] (in Persian). Archived from the original on 3 January 2024. Retrieved 3 January 2024.
  51. ↑ "What to know about Iran's deadly twin blasts". France 24. 4 January 2024. Archived from the original on 5 January 2024. Retrieved 5 January 2024.
  52. ↑ "ארה"ב: אין סיבה להאמין שישראל מעורבת בפיצוצים הקטלניים באיראן" [USA: There is no reason to believe that Israel is involved in the deadly explosions in Iran]. Ynet (in Hebrew). 3 January 2024. Archived from the original on 4 January 2024. Retrieved 3 January 2024.
  53. ↑ "Iran lays to rest victims of IS twin bombings". France 24. 5 January 2024. Archived from the original on 6 January 2024. Retrieved 5 January 2024.
  54. ↑ "Iran's Raisi promises retaliation at funeral for victims of twin bombings". Al Jazeera English. 5 January 2024. Archived from the original on 5 January 2024. Retrieved 6 January 2024.
  55. ↑ "Iran arrests 11 suspects over bomb blasts, mourners demand revenge – state TV". Reuters. 6 January 2024.
  56. ↑ "Iran identifies suspected bomb-maker behind twin blasts, arrests 35 people". Al Jazeera English. 11 January 2024. Archived from the original on 11 January 2024. Retrieved 11 January 2024.

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