Teheran needs to keep calm in the face of provocations

Nearly 100 people have been killed and more than 200 wounded by two bomb explosions near the tomb of Iranian general Qasem Soleimani in Kerman, Iran, on Wednesday, the fourth anniversary of his assassination by the United States.

Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei vowed the “terrorist attack”, the deadliest in the country in 42 years, would be met with a “harsh response”.

Although no group had claimed responsibility for the attack as of Thursday, some suspected that Arab separatists and Sunni jihadist groups such as the Islamic State are behind the explosions. These organizations have carried out attacks on civilians and security forces in the country in recent years.

Soleimani was widely seen as one of the most hated people by Washington and Tel Aviv for his leadership in major anti-Israel and antiUS campaigns in the Middle East from 2000 up until his death on Jan 3, 2020. He served as the commander of the Quds Force, an Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps division primarily responsible for extraterritorial and clandestine military operations.

Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi called the bombings a “cowardly act” carried out by “Iran-hating criminals and the henchmen of terror and darkness”.

The attack came amid heightened tensions in the region after the deputy leader of the Iran-backed Palestinian group, Hamas, was killed in an apparent Israeli drone strike in Lebanon. Even while a probe into the blasts is still underway, it is highly possible the incident will prompt the Islamic Republic to strengthen its support for the Palestinians in their ongoing fighting with Israel in Gaza, and the Hezbollah in Lebanon that is also fighting with Israel, as well as the Houthi group in its conflict with the US military in the Red Sea.

The United Nations, and other major players on the world stage including the European Union, China and Russia, have condemned the attacks and expressed their condolences to Teheran. The Iranian leadership should keep calm and not seek to take a rushed revenge, which will only make the situation in the region even more volatile and complicated, which is what its enemy in the dark has aimed at with its “cowardly act”.