SARAVAN, IRAN – Those who play with terrorist matches can sometimes get burned themselves.
When you think of the modern state of Iran, what comes to mind? Well, if you have been observing that country for a while you will inevitably cite the 1979 revolution when a bunch of Ayatollahs spurred the overthrow of the Shah of Iran, a man US President Jimmy Carter called the leader “an island of stability” in the Middle East. Oops!
If you are not a longstanding watcher you will probably at least know that Iran is pursuing nuclear know-how (for energy purposes or weapons? Hmm…..), meddles in the affairs of its neighbours (Iraq, Yemen…) and supports a variety of groups that can only be seen as terrorist in nature.
The two terrorist groups that come to mind first of course are Hizballah, based in Lebanon, and Hamas, currently the party running the West Bank. Both are known for their anti-Israel stance and countless terrorist attacks against the Jewish state. And both have used on many occasions the tactic of suicide bombing.
Nevertheless, Iran too has been on the receiving end of suicide bombers.
On this day in 2008
A suicide bomber affiliated with a Sunni militant group named Jundallah (‘Army of God‘) killed four people and wounded 12 in an attack in Saravan, a southeastern city in Iran.
In a statement Jundallah claimed the attack was in retaliation for the authorities’ destruction of a Sunni religious school in Zabol, another southeastern city (NB the Iranian regime is Shia). It also said the suicide bomber was Abdol-ghafoor Rigi, the brother of the group’s leader.
This group has killed many innocent and defenseless civilians in the past, and the security forces have killed their members.
Islamic Republic News Agency (IRNA)
Is there a lesson in any of this? How about it is seldom a good idea to fund and support terrorists as other terrorists will notice and hit you back.
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