Suicide bombing targets Iran's IRGC force, killing at least 20: State media

A suicide bombing in Iran’s southeast killed at least 20 Revolutionary Guard personnel and wounded 20 more, state media reported on Wednesday.

ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – A suicide bombing in Iran’s southeast killed at least 20 Revolutionary Guard personnel and wounded 20 more, state media reported on Wednesday.

The bombing took place in Sistan and Baluchistan province, according to the IRNA news agency.

Site of the bombing. (Photo: IRNA)
Site of the bombing. (Photo: IRNA)

The province, which is on a key opium trafficking route, has experienced frequent clashes between Iranian forces and Baluch separatists, as well as drug traffickers.

No group immediately claimed responsibility for the attack. However, following the incident, Iran’s media blamed an al-Qaida-linked militant group, Jaish al-Adl.

Moreover, the spokesperson for Iran’s Foreign Ministry, Bahram Qassemi, said Tehran would avenge the suicide attack.

“The self-sacrificing military and intelligence children of the people of Iran will take revenge for the blood of the martyrs of this incident,” Fars News Agency quoted Qassemi as saying.

Elsewhere, Iran’s Foreign Minister Javid Zarif appeared to blame the United States in a tweet.

Iran’s Revolutionary Guard has seen a string of recent attacks. In September, four men dressed in military uniform opened fire on a viewing stand where Iranian officials were seated to observe a procession held annually to mark the start of the 1980-88 Iran-Iraq war.

The attack resulted in the deaths of 25, 12 of which were members of the Revolutionary Guard. Dozens more were injured.

After the attack, the Islamic State published a statement on its propaganda website, Amaq, claiming responsibility for the assault.

Additionally, in June 2017, two armed groups attacked the Iranian Parliament and the shrine of former Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, where at least 18 people were killed, and 50 others wounded. The Islamic State would later claim responsibility for the incident.

Editing by Karzan Sulaivany