Crowds of people in Kerman, Iran, gathered on Wednesday night chanting, “death to America” and “death to Israel,” multiple outlets reported, in response to a bombing there earlier on Wednesday believed to have taken at least 95 lives.
Wednesday marked the fourth anniversary of a drone strike eliminating Major General Qasem Soleimani — the Iranian regime’s most respected terrorist leader and head of the Quds Force, a special terror unit under the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC). The IRGC is both a formal wing of the Iranian armed forces and a U.S.-designated terrorist organization. Former President Donald Trump ordered the airstrike against Soleimani, which took place in Iraq and also killed the head of the Shiite terrorist militia Kata’ib Hezbollah, Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis.
“Soleimani was the Iranian Regime’s most ruthless butcher, a monster who murdered or wounded thousands of American service members in Iraq,” Trump said in 2020, shortly after the strike. “As the world’s top terrorist, Soleimani orchestrated the deaths of countless men, women, and children. He directed the December assault on United States Forces in Iraq, and was actively planning new attacks.”
Protesters hold pictures of Iranian commander Qasem Soleimani, during a demonstration outside the U.S. consulate in Istanbul, on January 5, 2020. (YASIN AKGUL/AFP via Getty Images)
Thousands convened in Kerman, Soleimani’s hometown, on Wednesday to mark the anniversary of his “martyrdom,” an annual tradition promoted by the Iranian Islamist regime. During the events in the morning, two explosions occurred within an estimated ten minutes of each other, the initial one causing dozens of deaths and injuries and prompting a stampede; the second killing several first responders who rushed to the scene. Iranian officials confirmed 95 deaths on Wednesday night but suggested the death toll could increase as some of those injured were in critical condition.
No individual or organization has taken responsibility for the bombing at press time, which Iranian officials described as a terrorist attack after initially suggesting an accidental gas explosion may have been responsible. At least one Iranian official suggested that America, Israel, or both were responsible, however, and reports from Kerman indicated that mobs had formed, chanting, “death to America.”
Australia’s ABC network reported that Iranian state television was airing footage of crowds chanting, “death to Israel” and “death to America,” outside of the cemetery where Soleimani was buried. The IRGC-affiliated Tasnim News Agency published videos online of crowds assembling to reportedly mourn the victims of the attack, noting the “death to America” chant in footage from the city of Gorgan.
“By nightfall, crowds returned to the Martyrs Cemetery in Kerman chanting: ‘Death to Israel’ and ‘Death to America,'” France24 similarly reported.
The French network observed that a senior Iranian official — an alleged “political deputy” of Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi, Mohammad Jamshidi — wrote a statement on Twitter accusing Washington and Jerusalem of having conspired to bomb Kerman.
“Washington says USA and Israel had no role in terrorist attack in Kerman, Iran. Really? A fox smells its own lair first,” Jamshidi reportedly wrote. “Make no mistake. The responsibility for this crime lies with the US and Zionist regimes (Israel) and terrorism is just a tool.”
Contrary to the accusation, no publicly available information suggests any American or Israeli involvement and both governments have denied having any knowledge related to the staging of the attack. The dictator of Iran, “Supreme Leader” Ayatollah Khamenei, and President Raisi notably omitted any accusations against America or Israel in their remarks acknowledging the terrorist attack.
“Once again, the wicked and criminal enemies of the Iranian nation created a tragedy and martyred a large number of dear people in Kerman and in the fragrant atmosphere of martyrs’ tombs,” Khamenei said on Wednesday evening, according to a translation published by Tasnim.
Ayatollah Ali Khamenei (Office of the Iranian Supreme Leader via AP)
“Ayatollah Khamenei added that the criminals could not tolerate the people’s love for Lt. General Qassem Soleimani and their enthusiasm to visit the tomb of the esteemed figure on the anniversary of his martyrdom,” Tasnim added, “The enemies ‘must know that the soldiers of the bright path of Soleimani will not tolerate their villainy and crime either,’ the Leader stressed.”
Raisi similarly condemned the attack as “indiscriminate and cowardly” and vowed to use his authority to bring to justice those responsible.
“Undoubtedly, the perpetrators and those who ordered this cowardly act will soon be identified and punished for their heinous act by the capable security and law enforcement forces,” the Iranian state outlet PressTV quoted Raisi as stating.
Iran is the world’s leading state sponsor of terrorism, responsible for bankrolling a variety of jihadist organizations in the region and beyond. Iran is prominently a funder of Hamas, the Sunni terrorist organization responsible for the unprecedented atrocities committed against Israeli civilians on October 7. Hamas terrorists killed an estimated 1,200 people that day, including infants, the elderly, and disabled people — many of them gang-raped, tortured, and subjected to other crimes against humanity. In response to the attack, Tehran staged street parties featuring fireworks and free lemonade to celebrate the killing of innocents. The crowds at those events also chanted, “death to Israel” and “death to America,” common slogans at Iranian political assemblies.
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