Terrorism in Iran

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Terrorism in Iran is not a serious threat to the state, but the governments of the United States, the United Kingdom, Israel, Kazakhstan, and Yemen have accused the Ahmadinejad administration of sponsoring terrorism either in their, or against their, respective countries. United States President George W. Bush has called Iran the "world's primary state sponsor of terror."^[1]^[2]^[3]^[4]

Iran simultaneously accuses the United States of engaging in terrorism. Alaeddin Boroujerdi, head of the Iranian Parliament's Foreign Policy and National Security Committee, said on 28 January 2007 that the U.S. policy of having troops arrest or kill Iranian militants in Iraq is "against all recognized international treaties to order the death of nationals of another country in a foreign land."^[5]

1 Attacks
2 Counter-terrorism
3 State-sponsored terrorism
- 3.1 Hezbollah
4 See also
5 References
6 External link

[edit] Attacks

[edit] The 1988 shooting down of Iran Air Flight 655

Main article: Iran Air Flight 655

On July 3, 1988 the USS Vincennes shot down an Iranian Airbus A300B2 on a scheduled commercial flight in Iranian airspace over the Strait of Hormuz, resulting in 290 civilian fatalities from six nations, including 66 children. On February 22, 1996 the United States agreed to pay Iran $61.8 million in compensation for the 248 Iranians killed in the shootdown. The United States has not compensated Iran for the airplane itself to date. The aircraft was worth more than $30 million.^{[citation needed]}

[edit] 1990s

Two members of Mujahedin-e-Khalq, an organization the Iranian and U.S. governments regard as terrorist, assassinated Asadollah Lajevardi, a prosecutor and director of Evin Prison, along with his brother and a bystander on 23 August 1998.^[6]

[edit] Mashhad bombing

On June 20, 1994 explosion of a bomb in a prayer hall of Imam Reza shrine in Mashhad^[7] THE bomb that killed at least 25 people on June 20th in Mashhad exploded at Ashura.^[8]Although government blamed Mujahedin-e-Khalq in TV show to avoid sectarian conflict between Shia and Sunni, The Pakistani daily "News" of March 27,1995, reported "Pakistani investigators have identified a 24-year-old religious fanatic Abdul Shakoor residing in Lyari in Karachi, as an important Pakistani associate of Ramzi Yousef. Abdul Shakoor had intimate contacts with Ramzi Ahmed Yousef and was responsible for the June 20,1994, massive bomb explosion at the shrine Imam Ali Reza in Mashhad."^[9]

[edit] 2000s

MEK members fired five rockets at the general command of the Internal Security Forces in Tehran, killing and injuring several, on 7 January 2001.^[10] MEK members fired mortar shells at several government buildings, including the Supreme Court, in Tehran on 21 January 2001.^[11]

[edit] 2007 Zahedan bombing

Main article: 2007 Zahedan bombing

A car filled with explosives stopped in front of a bus full of Revolutionary Guards in Ahmabad district, Zahedan, Sistan-Baluchestan Province at 6:30 a.m. on 14 February, 2007. The car, parked in the middle of the road, forced the bus to stop. The car's driver and passengers then got out of the car and used motorbikes to leave the scene while they shot at the bus. A few seconds later the bombs exploded, killing 18 Guards. Guards commander Qasem Rezaei said, "This blind terrorist operation led to the martyrdom of 18 citizens of Zahedan." Rezaei attributed the attack to "insurgents and elements of insecurity." Majid Razavi, an Interior Ministry official, said Iranian police arrested a suspect within an hour of the bombing.^[12]

Jundallah, an organization affiliated with Al Qaeda,^[13] claimed responsibility for the attack on 15 February and said it is retaliation for the executions of those responsible for the Ahvaz Bombings. The Iranian government has arrested five suspects, two of whom were carrying camcorders and grenades when they were arrested, while the police killed the main "agent" of the attack.^[14]

Hossein Ali Shahriari, Zahedan's representative in parliament, rhetorically asked, "Why does our diplomatic apparatus not seriously confront the Pakistani government for harboring bandits and regime's enemies? Why do security, military and police officials not take more serious action?"^[14]

[edit] Counter-terrorism

Hassan Kazemi, Iran's ambassador to Iraq, said on 18 January 2007 that Iran is willing to train Iraqi security forces and give them military equipent for counter-terrorism.^[15]

The Russian government has worked with the United States and Iran in counter-terrorism operations.^[16]^[17]

[edit] State-sponsored terrorism

The Council on Foreign Relations says Iran actively supports Hamas, Hezbollah, Palestinian Islamic Jihad, and the PKK.^[18] The Saleh administration in Yemen has accused the Iranian government of fueling the Sa'dah conflict by financing and directing the Believing Youth, a militant Shi'ite Zeidi organization that is trying to overthrow the mostly Sunni government.^[4]

[edit] Hezbollah

On 3 February 2007 Hezbollah leader Hasan Nasrallah admitted for the first time that the Government of Iran assists Hezbollah with "money, weapons, and training, motivated by a religious fraternity and ethnic solidarity. And the help is funneled through Syria, and everybody knows it."^[19]