IS claims attack at Iran parade, 29 die
ISIS claims responsibility Iran vows ‘ crushing response’
Tehran: Militants shot dead at least 29 people in an attack Saturday on an Iranian military parade claimed by the Islamic State group, as Tehran accused a US ally in the region of the assault.
Tehran, Sept. 22: Militants shot dead at least 24 people including women and children at a military parade in southwestern Iran on Saturday, state media reported, in a rare attack the government blamed on a US ally in the region.
The Islamic State of Iraq and Syria claimed responsibility for the shooting rampage dubbed a “terrorist” attack by the authorities, in which at least 53 people were also wounded.
The deadly shooting targeted the city of Ahvaz in Khuzestan, a province bordering Iraq that has a large ethnic Arab community and has seen separatist violence in the past which Iran has blamed on its regional rivals.
“The number of deceased in the incident reached 24, some of whom were women and children,” IRNA said, adding the death toll could rise further as many of the wounded were in critical condition.
Armed forces spokesman Brigadier General Abolfazl Shekarchi said that the dead included a young girl and a former serviceman in a wheelchair. “Of the four terrorists, three were killed on the spot, while the fourth who was wounded and arrested, died moments later due to wounds,” Shekarchi told state TV.
Khuzestan deputy governor Ali- Hossein Hosseinzadeh told the semi- official ISNA news agency that a journalist was also among the dead. He also said earlier that “eight to nine” troops had been killed.
“Those who opened fire on civilians and the armed forces have links to the Ahvazi movement,” Guards spokesman Ramezan Sharif told ISNA. “They are funded by Saudi Arabia and attempted to cast a shadow over the Iranian armed forces.”