Fact-Checking | Baseless Accusations by the Islamic Republic Against the US and Israel in Kerman Explosions

The Poligraph website, a fact-checking project of Voice of America, reported on two deadly explosions in Kerman city that left nearly 100 dead and 284 injured. Immediately after the explosions, and before anyone claimed responsibility for the attacks, senior officials of the Islamic Republic blamed the US and Israel for targeting the memorial ceremony for Soleimani. The report continues that Ebrahim Raisi, the President of the Islamic Republic, warned the Zionist regime, saying: "Do not doubt that you will pay for this crime. You will deeply regret the crimes you have committed." Ismail Qaani, Soleimani's successor in the Quds Force of the Revolutionary Guards, stated: "By the grace of God, you will see that the one who has failed in this arena and will leave this field more disgraced than today is the criminal Zionist regime and America." Mohammad Jamshidi, Raisi's political deputy, wrote in a post on X: "Washington says that the US and Israel had no role in the terrorist attack in Kerman, Iran. Really? The rooster's comb is visible in this matter. Do not be mistaken. The responsibility for this crime lies with America and the Zionist regime, and terrorism is merely a tool." Poligraph stated that the falsehood of Iran's baseless claims against the US and Israel has been proven. The US State Department called the Islamic Republic's accusations against America "ridiculous," and the White House stated that there is "absolutely no evidence" that Israel was involved in the attacks in any way. However, the rhetoric and threats from the Islamic Republic against the United States have intensified to the point that the White House has renewed protective services for Mike Pompeo, the former Secretary of State, and his assistant, whom the Islamic Republic holds responsible for Soleimani's assassination. The falsehood of the Islamic Republic's anti-American and anti-Israeli claims became clear 24 hours after the attack in Kerman when Al-Furqan, the media branch of ISIS, published a statement on its Telegram channel claiming responsibility for the attack. ISIS stated that two suicide bombers carried out the attacks with explosive vests. Poligraph concluded that opposition figures to the Islamic Republic of Iran pointed out the absence of Soleimani's family members and senior government officials at the memorial, and referencing a post by Masih Alinejad, an Iranian journalist and activist, suggested that this attack may have been organized by Islamic Republic officials: "The commander of the Revolutionary Guards and Qasem Soleimani's daughter visited the injured from these attacks in the hospital. People are asking why none of the family members or senior regime officials were present at the ceremony? People do not suspect foreign countries, but directly doubt the Islamic system itself." Latest news from the Kerman explosions; report by Afshar Sigarchi. Mohammad Javad Akbarin: Neither the government's image of the Kerman incident is coherent and unified, nor is the audience's perception. Nazila Golestani: If the Kerman explosions were the work of ISIS, the main responsibility still lies with the Islamic Republic. Richard Goldberg: The Kerman explosions are a domestic security threat and have nothing to do with Israel and America. Claims of the arrest of some perpetrators of the Kerman explosions; the commander of the Guards: We have already taken our revenge. What is the Islamic Republic's responsibility in the Kerman explosions? Debate between Mehdi Khazali and Hamed Sheibani-Rad. Conflicting news reports; a judicial official reported the discovery of 64 more bombs; the Kerman Guards denied the existence of "other bombs." The death toll from the Kerman explosions has risen to 89; the Islamic Republic claimed to have arrested "some" of the perpetrators. A teachers' organization: The students killed in Kerman were victims of the educational propaganda policy. Reuters, citing American sources: "ISIS Khorasan" is responsible for the deadly Kerman explosions. The Islamic Republic's judiciary has filed charges against eight well-known figures for commenting on the Kerman incident. Narges Mohammadi's reaction to the deadly Kerman explosions: "Security" cannot be sustainable without freedom.