The Iranian Ministry of Intelligence says it has killed two individuals in relation to the attacks in the southeastern city of Kerman, where more than 90 people were killed and over 280 individuals were wounded.
Two blasts within a 20-minute interval on January 3 targeted a large memorial gathering for General Qasem Soleimani, a senior commander of Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), who was killed in a targeted US drone strike in Baghdad four years ago.
A day later, the Islamic State (ISIS) claimed responsibility for the bombings, stating that two of its members “activated their explosive vests” at the gathering near Soleimani’s grave.
In a Persian statement on Friday, January 19, the Iranian Ministry of Intelligence stated that the two “terrorists” were foreign nationals who had entered Iran with a plan to carry out another attack, just a few days after the Kerman incident. “They were killed in a firefight with ambushed intelligence forces of the province,” it said.
According to the statement, several individuals linked to the Kerman attack were arrested and transferred to detention centers. “One of the detained individuals was “Abu Imran,” also known as Mohammad Imran Tanvir, a specialist in bomb-making associated with the ISIS-affiliated group, Islamic State Khorasan Province (IS-KP).”
Earlier, the ministry reported the arrest of 35 individuals in connection to the incident, saying that one of the two attackers was a citizen of Tajikistan. Later, it said that one of the attackers had been trained by ISIS in Afghanistan before entering Iran.
The ministry further stated that it has identified the perpetrator of the 2020 attack on Kabul University, naming Mohammad Adel Aref, also known as Adel Panjshiri, who has also been involved in Iran’s Kerman attack. The ministry sought the cooperation of Iranian citizens in apprehending this ISIS member by publishing his pictures.
“Aref is directly connected to the ISIS operations commander in Kerman, Abdul Hakim Tawhidi. He was previously detained for planning a suicide attack at Kabul University and, after spending a year in Bagram prison in Afghanistan, was subsequently released,” the ministry stated.
At least 35 people, mostly students, were killed, and 50 others were wounded when a gunman stormed Kabul University in an hours-long battle in Afghanistan’s capital, Kabul, in November 2020. The attack began around the time when government officials and Iranian diplomats, including Ambassador Bahador Aminian, were expected to arrive at the campus for the inauguration of an Iranian book fair.
Islamic State’s regional branch, Islamic State Khorasan Province (IS-KP) claimed responsibility for the attack saying that it targeted newly graduated “judges and investigators belonging to the apostate Afghan government.” Three men were then killed by the Afghanistan security forces in connection to the attack.
In response to the ISIS bombing in Kerman, Iran hit targets in Iraq, Syria, and Pakistan. The last one caused a diplomatic and military uproar in Pakistan that escalated fast. Islamabad also fired missiles into Iranian territory, claiming to have hit Baluch separatists. Both countries have recalled their ambassador back to their capitals as diplomatic relations remain thorny.
