https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-67872281
As a result of two explosions near a cemetery in the city of Kerman in southern Iran, at least 103 people were killed and more than 170 were injured, Iranian media reported. Those gathered attended a ceremony dedicated to the fourth anniversary of the death of Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps General Qassem Soleimani. Iranian authorities called the incident a terrorist attack. According to Iranian state media, two explosions occurred during the ceremony.
In an interview with Iran's Khabar channel, Interior Minister Ahmad Vahidi called the explosions a "conspiracy" and said the first explosion occurred around 3 p.m. local time, and at about 3:20 when people and rescuers arrived at the scene to help , a second explosion occurred.
According to some sources, the explosions occurred in the immediate vicinity of Soleimani’s grave, while others report that it happened in the midst of the procession, as it passed by the Saheb al-Zaman mosque.
The BBC Persian service, citing reports from local sources, writes that the explosions occurred near the Saheb al-Zaman mosque on the road to Golzar Shahada - the first one thundered at a distance of 700 meters, and the second one kilometer from the grave of Qassem Soleimani. According to some reports, the bombs were placed in two bags and detonated remotely, but this information has not yet been officially confirmed.
The Iranian branch of the International Red Crescent reports that many of the wounded are in serious condition. “Our rapid response teams are evacuating the victims. But crowds of fleeing people blocked the roads,” said the head of the ICC branch, Reza Fallah, in an interview with Iranian television. Iranian authorities say that an investigation into the circumstances of the explosions has begun, the main version being a terrorist attack.
Qassem Soleimani, the ideologist of Iranian foreign policy, died in Iran in 2020 as a result of a US airstrike on the building in which he was located. During his funeral, 56 people died due to overcrowding, and the funeral was postponed. Tehran is confident that this was a targeted attack authorized by Donald Trump, who was then the US President. Soleimani, who commanded the elite Quds Force in the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, played an important role in the spread of Iranian influence in the Middle East, which both the United States, Saudi Arabia and Israel, Tehran's main opponents in the region, tried to contain.
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