IRGC Commander Describes Tehran Attacks as Saudi Arabia's 'Demand' from Terrorists

Continuing the accusations of Iranian officials against other countries regarding the Tehran attacks last week, the commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and the head of the judiciary once again accused Saudi Arabia of being involved in these attacks and accused the United States and Israel of 'supporting' their perpetrators. According to Fars News Agency, Mohammad Ali Jafari, the commander of the IRGC, said on the evening of Monday, June 12, 'Based on accurate information we have, Saudi Arabia has not only supported the terrorists but has also demanded operations in Iran from them.' Last Wednesday, an attack by five members of the Islamic State group on the Parliament and the tomb of Ayatollah Khomeini left 17 dead and dozens injured. The Islamic State group immediately claimed responsibility for this operation. The IRGC commander also stated without providing details or evidence that the United States and Israel had 'supported' the perpetrators of these attacks. On Saturday, June 10, he had also said that the attacks last Wednesday were carried out 'with political goals and to weaken the regime.' He emphasized that the 'main war' is in Iraq and Syria, 'the consequences of which sometimes reach Iran.' A day after the Tehran attacks, Gholamali Khoshroo, Iran's permanent representative to the United Nations, also called for attention to the 'terrorist' incident in Tehran and the 'motivations and collusions' of the perpetrators in a letter to the UN Secretary-General and the Security Council, implicitly accusing Saudi Arabia of being involved in these attacks. The Supreme Leader of the Islamic Republic also emphasized in his condolence message that the 'definitive result' of these attacks is 'nothing but an increase in hatred towards the governments of the United States and their agents in the region such as Saudi Arabia.' This stance of Iranian officials comes as in a video attributed to the perpetrators of the Tehran attacks, one of them threatens that after Iran, it will be the turn of 'Al Saud' (Saudi Arabia). Nevertheless, the accusations of Iranian officials against Saudi Arabia continue. They have not provided evidence or documentation for their claims and have only referred to previous statements by the country's defense minister. Mohammed bin Salman, the Crown Prince and Minister of Defense of Saudi Arabia, said in an interview with MBC on Tuesday, April 12, that Iran is seeking to dominate Muslim countries and therefore there is no possibility of negotiations with Tehran. He emphasized that Riyadh will not wait for war to come inside Saudi Arabia and will instead strive to bring the battle to Iran. Meanwhile, the head of the Iranian judiciary referred to these remarks and stated that the 'imagination' of Saudi officials to bring the war inside Iran 'will never be realized.' Sadegh Larijani also considered the White House's message regarding the attacks on the Parliament and the tomb of Ayatollah Khomeini in Tehran as 'a clear indication of support' from these countries for 'terrorists.' Donald Trump, the President of the United States, expressed condolences to the victims of the 'terrorist attacks' in Tehran last Wednesday while also stating that the governments supporting terrorism become victims of the 'evil' they promote. Initially, Trump did not respond to the Tehran attacks at all, and it took hours for him to react and issue a statement like his European counterparts.