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The explosions occurred in the south of the country on Wednesday as Iran commemorated the fourth anniversary of the senior officer's death.
Published on March 1, 2024 2:19 p.m. Updated on March 1, 2024 4:48 p.m
Reading time: 1 min
A reproduction of Qassem Soleimani, General of the Revolutionary Guards, near his grave in Kerman (South Iran), January 2, 2023. (MORTEZA NIKOUBAZL / NURPHOTO / AFP)
At least 103 people died in a double explosion on Wednesday, January 3, near the grave of Revolutionary Guard General Qassem Soleimani, who was assassinated by the US in 2020, state television reported. The latter states that 141 people were also injured.
“The incident is a terrorist attack,” state television quoted Rahman Jalali, deputy governor of Kerman province in southern Iran, as saying. According to television images, rescuers were on site where many people gathered to mark the anniversary of the general's death. The Iranian government has declared a “nationwide day of mourning” for Thursday, state television reported.
Putin says he is shocked by 'cruelty and cynicism'
“The murder of peaceful people who were visiting a cemetery is shocking in its cruelty and cynicism,” Russian President Vladimir Putin responded in a message to his Iranian counterpart Ebrahim Raïssi and Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the Kremlin said. “We strongly condemn terrorism in all its forms,” added the Russian president, for whom Iran is an ally.
Qassem Soleimani was killed in a US drone strike in Iraq in 2020 at the age of 62. A key figure in the Iranian regime, he was also one of the country's most popular figures. Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei declared three days of national mourning at the time of his death.
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