New Delhi: The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) Thursday said it was “shocked” and “saddened” by the bombings that killed nearly 100 people during the death anniversary ceremony of Iranian general Qasem Soleimani in the city of Kerman Wednesday.
Soleimani, an Iranian military officer who served in the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, was killed by a US drone strike in neighbouring Iraq in 2020. The strike was ordered by then US President Donald Trump.
“We are shocked and saddened by the terrible bombings in the Kerman City of Iran. At this difficult time, we express our solidarity with the government and people of Iran,” said MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal in a statement on X Thursday.
We are shocked and saddened on the terrible bombings in the Kerman City of Iran. At this difficult time, we express our solidarity with the government and people of Iran.
Our thoughts and prayers are with the families of the victims and with the wounded.
— Randhir Jaiswal (@MEAIndia) January 4, 2024
Several countries have expressed concern over the blasts including Russia, Malaysia, Turkey and Iraq. The US, meanwhile, has denied claims that it or Israel was behind the blasts in Kerman.
Calling these “irresponsible claims”, US State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller said in a press briefing Thursday: “The United States was not involved in any way, and any suggestion to the contrary is ridiculous”.
“We have no reason to believe that Israel was involved in this explosion,” he added.
On Wednesday, there were two bomb explosions near the burial site of the slain Iranian general during a ceremony marking his fourth death anniversary. Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, termed the bombings “terrorist attacks”.
“The corrupt, evil minds that led them to this miscalculation will definitely be the target of a severe pounding and a deserving retribution. They should know that…this tragedy will be met with a strong response,” Iran’s Supreme Leader had said in a statement Wednesday.
Soleimani’s assassination has only intensified tensions between Tehran and Washington, which have had no formal diplomatic relations since 1980. In 2022, Iran added dozens of US officials to its blacklist of individuals who it claims played a role in Soleimani’s assassination.
The bombings in Kerman city also come at a time of heightened US-Iran tensions amid the war between Israel and Hamas. Iran is believed to be supporting Hamas as well as Yemen’s Houthi rebels, who have stepped up attacks on commercial ships in the Red Sea, and thus prompted the US to set up a 10-nation force to protect ships in the area last month.
The Houthis also condemned the bombings in Kerman, calling them a “heinous crime” that attempted to undermine Iran’s support for resistance forces in Palestine and Lebanon. Earlier this week, Hamas deputy leader Saleh al-Arouri was killed in a blast in Beirut, and though Israel has neither confirmed nor denied responsibility, Lebanon caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati has expressed fears of regional war due to Israeli “provocations”.
(Edited by Rohan Manoj)
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