Two attacks shook Iran this Wednesday. More than 100 people have died and the authorities of the Islamic republic They point to Israel as a possible culprit of a measured and symbolic attack in full tribute to General Soleimani, assassinated by the United States in 2020.

Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, has promised to there will be a “strong response” to the “catastrophe” caused by “the evil and criminal enemies of the Iranian nation”, who “cannot tolerate the love and enthusiasm of the people to visit the shrine of their great commander Qasem Soleimani.”

The Kerman attack, for which Iran has blamed Israel without it having commented on the matter, has left at least 95 dead and 210 injured at a time of heightened tensions in the region due to the conflict in the Gaza Strip. . This event also took place after the death on December 25 of Razi Musavi, a senior official in Iran’s Revolutionary Guardin a bombing carried out by Israel against the Syrian capital, Damascus.

Iran’s Foreign Minister, Hosein Amirabdolahian, has stated that the attack on the fourth anniversary of Soleimani’s death, died on January 3, 2020 Due to the aforementioned US attack, it has caused “pain and sadness” and has announced the start of “legal measures” through the UN, as indicated through its profile on the social network X, formerly known as Twitter.

The keys to the attack

The attack also occurred coinciding with the tribute for the third anniversary of the death of Soleimani, who died on January 3, 2020. in a US precision strike ordered by its then president, Donald Trump.

Soleimani had been commander of the elite Quds group for more than two decades. of Iran’s Revolutionary Guard, from where he forged ties with Hezbollah and Hamas and helped Bashar Al Assad in important battles against the rebels in Syria.

The attack also occurs just hours after the assassination of Hamas’ number two in Beirut, Lebanon. The Palestinian authorities, Lebanon and Iran directly accused Israel of the bombing that killed Saleh Al-Arouri in Lebanese territory, and warned that the act “will not go without response or punishment.”

The Government of Lebanon confirmed that it is maintaining contacts with the Shiite militia party Hezbollah to try to avoid an increase in the conflict with Israel on the border. The Lebanese Foreign Minister, Abdullah Bu Habib, has stressed in statements to the British radio station BBC 4 that the authorities have started talks with the group to “convince them” that “they should not respond” to the death of the ‘number two’ of the political wing of Hamas. “We don’t tell them, we maintain a dialogue with them in this regard,” he said, before emphasizing that over the next 24 hours we will see “whether they respond or not.”

“We are very worried. The Lebanese do not want to be dragged (into a war with Israel)”, he explained. In this sense, he noted that “even Hezbollah does not want to be dragged into a regional war” and has asked Western countries to “put pressure on Israel to to put an end to their violence and their actions, not only in Lebanon and not only in Beirut, but also in Gaza.”

Hours earlier, Hezbollah had assured that this act represents “a dangerous event in the course of the war between the enemy and the axis of resistance”, after weeks of fighting on the border between Lebanon and Israel. “The criminal enemy, which after 90 days of crimes, massacres and destruction has not been able to subjugate Gaza (…) nor the rest of the proud cities, fields and villages, is resorting to a policy of assassination and physical liquidation of all those who worked, planned, carried out or supported the heroic operation ‘Al Aqsa Flood’,” he said, referring to the attacks carried out on October 7 by Hamas.

At least seven militants, including Al-Arouri, died and several other people were injured after the drone attack on a Hamas office located in Mushrifiya, in the southern suburbs of the Lebanese capital. The leader of the political arm of the militia, Ismail Haniyé, then assured that the bombing was a “terrorist act” that makes the group “stronger and more determined than ever.”

Al-Arouri had resided in Lebanon since 2018, and in 2010 he was released after spending twelve years in Israeli prisons. Considered the ‘number two’ of the political arm of Hamas and one of the commanders of the Al Qassam Brigades, he is attributed responsibility for several attacks against Israel from Lebanese soil and is identified as one of the main intermediaries in the release of hostages. taken on October 7.

International reactions

After the attack, Erdogan called the Iranian president to condemn the death of civilians, show his support in the fight against terrorism and convey his condolences to the Iranian people. “The enemies of the Iranian nation think that they can achieve their illegitimate objectives with the tool of terrorism, but the Iranian nation has demonstrated that these crimes cannot cause a disturbance in its cohesion, security and strategy,” declared the Iranian president, who He has also reiterated his support for Palestine and condemned the “crimes of the Zionists.”

They also support Iran from Venezuela. The ruling United Socialist Party of Venezuela (PSUV) has assured that the attack is an “atrocious terrorist act” that is “part” of a “war escalation” that “drives the Zionist regime of Israel.” “This bloody crime (…) is part of the brutal escalation of war in the Middle East promoted by the Zionist regime of Israel, with the shameless support of the Government of the United States, and which has unleashed the bloody genocide against the Palestinian people. “the party said in a statement.

The PSUV condemned “in the most categorical terms” this attack with explosions in the cemetery of the city of Kerman, where the fourth anniversary of the assassination of Lieutenant General Qassem Soleimani was commemorated, and expressed its solidarity with the families of the victims, with the “brother Iranian people” and with the “leadership of the Islamic Revolution.” “We reiterate our unwavering support in your fight for the development of an independent homeland and prosperous, as well as for a just world, free of imperial hegemonies,” the group added.

The European Union, for the moment, is cautious. The High Representative of the EU for Foreign Policy, Josep Borrell, has called Amirabdolahian to “convey his condolences.” after the horrible attacks in Kerman “I have condemned this terrorist attack in the strongest terms and have expressed my solidarity with the Iranian people,” he added.

Along these lines, from Washington, the spokesperson for the US State Department, Matthew Miller, He expressed his condolences to his loved ones at a press conference. of the victims who died “in this horrible explosion”, while denying the responsibility of the United States or Israel in the attack. “It’s too early, at least for us, to be able to say what might have caused it. But I do want to address some irresponsible claims that I’ve seen circulating and say that, first of all, the United States has not been involved in any way, and any suggestions to the contrary is ridiculous; and number two, we have no reason to believe that Israel was involved in this explosion,” he said.

The US also insists on disassociating Israel from the attack on Al-Arouri. White House Security Spokesperson John Kirby has assured that there is no indication that Israel is behind the bombing, although he has reaffirmed the Israeli Government’s right to persecute senior figures in the Palestinian militia.

“I am not confirming that the Israelis carried out this airstrike. I would refer you to them to discuss their military operations. (…) Israel has the right and responsibility to pursue the threat posed by Hamas, which means it has the right and responsibility to pursue its leaders,” Kirby said during a press conference.