Iran: two explosions were heard near the grave of a slain general, state television reports deaths

Two explosions rocked Wednesday near the grave of Iranian general Qasem Soleimani, who was the architect of Iran’s military operations in the Middle East and whose death Iran is marking the fourth anniversary of, state television reported.

State television initially reported that “at least twenty people” were killed in the incident, which took place in Kerman in southern Iran. Iran’s Tasnim Press Agency reported thirty wounded.

A huge explosion was heard near the Saheb al-Zaman mosque, where Soleimani’s grave is located, in Kerman, southern Iran, state television reported, adding that another explosion was heard minutes later. Judging by the television footage, rescuers were working at the place where many people had gathered to celebrate the anniversary of the general’s death.

The cause of the explosions is still unknown. “At the moment we do not know whether it was an explosion of gas cylinders or a terrorist attack,” a local official said on state television, according to Reuters. State television speaks of a “terrorist attack.”

Qassem Soleimani died in January 2020 during an American drone attack in Iraq. In the Revolutionary Guard, the ideological army of the Islamic Republic, he was the leader of their armed wing, the Al-Quds Force, responsible for external operations. For both his supporters and his detractors, he was the key man of Iranian influence in the Middle East. This undoubtedly increased Tehran’s diplomatic weight in the region.