Iran 'blames monarchists for mosque blast'

Alamgir · 05-08-2008, 13:30 PM

I knew this was an act of terrorism and not an 'accident' as claimed by some officials.......

Quote:

Iran 'blames monarchists for mosque blast'
Thu May 8, 9:17 AM ET

TEHRAN (AFP) - Iran on Thursday blamed a mosque explosion that killed 13 people in the southern city of Shiraz last month on Western-backed monarchists who oppose the Islamic republic, the Fars news agency reported.

"The Shiraz blast was an act of sabotage and a plot by the enemies of the Iranian people in the name of monarchism," Interior Minister Mostafa Pour Mohammadi was quoted as saying.

"Their headquarters are in countries which claim (to support) human rights, defend their nations and be anti-terrorist," the minister said.

"They are supported in these countries where they have been given radio and television stations."

Several opposition TV and radio channels have sprung up in the United States and Europe in recent years broadcasting programmes to Iran via satellite.

Initial reports claimed the April 12 blast, which wounded more than 200, was a bomb attack, but officials later insisted it had been an accident.

On Wednesday Fars quoted Intelligence Minister Gholam Hossein Mohseni Ejeie as saying the explosion was caused by a bomb and that suspects believed to have links with the country's Western foes had been arrested.

Pour Mohammadi said on Thursday that the culprits had been identified and arrested "in another bombing attempt which was foiled" in an unspecified Iranian province.

He did not single out a particular country, but Iranians have a sizable diaspora community in Iran's arch-foe the United States, some of whom support the son of Iran's deposed Shah, Reza Pahlavi.

The Shiraz blast ripped through a packed mosque during an evening prayer sermon by a prominent local cleric.

Mohseni Ejeie said on Wednesday that the group responsible for the blast had links with Britain and the United States.

He charged that these countries "did not take any measure to prevent terrorist actions and rather supported them."

Iran has blamed US and British agents based in neighbouring Iraq and Afghanistan for launching deadly attacks in border provinces with significant ethnic minority populations in recent years.

But the strike in Shiraz was the first in decades in Iran's Persian heartland. The normally placid city is not in a border zone, nor is it home to any significant ethnic or religious minority population.

One of Iran's most famous tourist cities, Shiraz is popular because of its proximity to important ancient sites from the Achaemenid Empire that ruled much of central and southwest Asia from 550 to 331 BC.

Iran 'blames monarchists for mosque blast' - Yahoo! News

**Officer of Engineers** · 05-08-2008, 14:02 PM

I cannot believe that they are still a force to be reckoned with.

S-2 · 05-08-2008, 14:11 PM

Their sudden reappearance as a force of reckoning may conveniently stem from the increased pressure Iran is feeling for supporting shia militias in Iraq. A countervailing argument, if you will.

bolo121 · 05-08-2008, 14:12 PM

Well remember who was behind the monarchy back in the day, could it be a certain superpower getting a bit of its own back?

Dreadnought · 05-08-2008, 14:20 PM

Sorry, We arent into blowing up places of worship. Yes we know extremeists take shelter and store weapons in mosques and preach alot of hatred. But we still dont blow them up. If we did then we would make it a point and do it with a tank round or aerial bomb in plain site so all the media could see.

We are not the cowards that strap it to their bodies (men and women now) and then enter civilian population and detonate among the innocent.

His accusations hold about as much water as his policies. Complete uteer ********!

YOU ****ING COWARDS! REAP WHAT YOU SOW!

bolo121 · 05-08-2008, 14:26 PM

It could be sunni extremists who might be among those getting funds from the CIA, they probably hate Iran anyway so even if their American paymasters have certain rules, they might not follow them. After all the US is angry at Iran at its funding of militias in Iraq and would have been looking for any way to turn the tables.

Dreadnought · 05-08-2008, 14:31 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bolo121

It could be sunni extremists who might be among those getting funds from the CIA, they probably hate Iran anyway so even if their American paymasters have certain rules, they might not follow them. After all the US is angry at Iran at its funding of militias in Iraq and would have been looking for any way to turn the tables.

Bolo,
As mentioned before we dont target houses of worship. If we did then our jobs over there could have become much easier but it is certainly not in the rules of engagement as far as I know of.Additionally I dont believe for a moment the CIA is paying Sunni groups to do anything.

Are we angry that Iran is allowing to train and fund extremeists in Iraq and attack our troops? Yes we most certainly are but that still dont change the rules of engagement one iotta.

bolo121 · 05-08-2008, 14:40 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dreadnought

Bolo,
As mentioned before we dont target houses of worship. If we did then our jobs over there could have become much easier but it is certainly not in the rules of engagement as far as I know of.Additionally I dont believe for a moment the CIA is paying Sunni groups to do anything.

Are we angry that Iran is allowing to train and fund extremeists in Iraq and attack our troops? Yes we most certainly are but that still dont change the rules of engagement one iotta.

I never meant regular troops, the US forces would definitely abide by the rules of engagement. However i find it hard to believe that at a time of such tension between Iran and the US with the nuke problem and all, that the CIA isnt spreading the money around trying to find out anything and everything it can. All it would take is for some of that money to go to some reckless group.

Dreadnought · 05-08-2008, 14:51 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bolo121

I never meant regular troops, the US forces would definitely abide by the rules of engagement. However i find it hard to believe that at a time of such tension between Iran and the US with the nuke problem and all, that the CIA isnt spreading the money around trying to find out anything and everything it can. All it would take is for some of that money to go to some reckless group.

IMO, Iran would love to point the finger at the West due to a few specific reasons.

1) Poor economy brought about by their leaders sabre rattling the West and the U.N. noncompliance sanctions. Yet this does not stop even know their economy is in a nose dive and the people are beginning to see that this man that leads them is not what he promised and its only getting worse.

2) Their leader will try anything to get the people behind him and his rhetoric for the West by using any means possible. Perhaps including the means taken above. He knows that the U.N. sanctions are beginning to take effect and the more rhetoric he gives the worse conditions get for his people and the more unstable his supporters become.

Its only a matter of time before it all catches up with him.

But more to the point..We dont need to stoop to such levels to get even with Iran and their training and supplying of militants in Iraq.
Its simply below us to contenplate such brash measures when professionally we could run them down if we so chose too.

Blademaster · 05-08-2008, 15:25 PM

I think the monarchists are a convenient group to pin the blame on to rile up the population and give support to the Islamists mullahs. Nobody in Iran wants the monarchy back.

FOG3 · 05-08-2008, 17:48 PM

What's the odds Iran would blow it up themselves to try to give themselves something to point the finger at the West?

Alamgir · 05-08-2008, 19:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by FOG3

What's the odds Iran would blow it up themselves to try to give themselves something to point the finger at the West?

None. The Iranian authorities have been treating this very cautiously. At first it seemed obvious to me that they tried to cover up it was a terrorist attack the day it happened by playing it down as an 'accident'. Such a successful bomb attack like this in a very secure city like Shiraz was sure to be a huge morale booster for anti-Iran groups. So it appears to me that the authorities deliberately down-played the incident so that it would not be used as a source of encouragement or inspiration for other attacks elsewhere, and by different terrorists. Now one month later all the steam and momentum this attack could have provided has worn out and they've come clean it was in fact, not an accident, but a deliberate bombing.

As for the 'monarchist' story - I dont buy it. Either the authorities dont know who carried out the attack or they are still concealing it from the public. Id call it a psychological tactic (defence even) if the latter is true.

In regards to CIA backing of anti-Iranian groups. Its no coincidence that since the American intervention in Afghanistan and Iraq, two armed and anti-Iranian groups have appeared on Iran's periphery. First came the Kurdish group PJAK in 2005, based in Iraqi Kurdestan. Then came the Baluchi group Jundallah in 2006 - claimed to operate out of Pakistani Baluchestan, and possibly Afghanistan's Nimruz province (which has a large Baluchi population). Both groups, separated by thousands of miles, remarkably, were floated within less than a year of eachother. Both groups, remarkably (or is that coincidently?) toe the same lines as eachother (not separatism, but "federalism") and both groups are well armed and equipped to fight (advanced weapons and explosives know-how dont just drop from the sky).

Its no coincidence that these two anti-Iran proxy groups sprung up at relatively the same time and are based in close proximity to where US forces are staged.

Dreadnought · 05-09-2008, 09:15 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by FOG3

What's the odds Iran would blow it up themselves to try to give themselves something to point the finger at the West?

About the very same odds that the truth comes out of their leaders mouth.

dark-alias · 05-09-2008, 10:26 AM

Quote:

As mentioned before we dont target houses of worship.

You are 100% correct. We do not target houses of worship at all, but the militants whom occupy, store caches, preach hate and invoke violence do. Therefore in our ROE's we are allowed to enter, clear, search, or destroy if necessary. Of course we try to avoid this at all measure due to the sensitivity of the day. Its simple we do what we can to kill the enemy wherever he or she may go and this does not exclude the noted above. Also if there are militants inside of your holy house, you know about it, you are directly linked to their actions, so if it happens to be damaged because someone with an RPG-7 was shooting from in and a sabot round in turn eliminated the threat, then those are the consequences you pay for your actions.

Kansas Bear · 05-09-2008, 14:46 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Alamgir

In regards to CIA backing of anti-Iranian groups. Its no coincidence that since the American intervention in Afghanistan and Iraq, two armed and anti-Iranian groups have appeared on Iran's periphery. First came the Kurdish group PJAK in 2005, based in Iraqi Kurdestan. Then came the Baluchi group Jundallah in 2006 - claimed to operate out of Pakistani Baluchestan, and possibly Afghanistan's Nimruz province (which has a large Baluchi population). Both groups, separated by thousands of miles, remarkably, were floated within less than a year of eachother. Both groups, remarkably (or is that coincidently?) toe the same lines as eachother (not separatism, but "federalism") and both groups are well armed and equipped to fight (advanced weapons and explosives know-how dont just drop from the sky).

Its no coincidence that these two anti-Iran proxy groups sprung up at relatively the same time and are based in close proximity to where US forces are staged.

Ah yes, "America is the Great Satan" chant.............

Quote:

Kurdish guerrillas have launched a clandestine war in northwestern Iran, ambushing troops as they seek Western backing to secure an ethnic homeland.

In retaliation, the Iranian army has carried out a series of counterattacks in the mountains, which span the border with Iraq.

Murat Karayilan, a Kurdish guerrilla commander, told the Daily Telegraph that Tehran had originally tried to recruit the outlawed groups to fight coalition troops in Iraq.

Iran negotiating with "terrorists" to attack the coalition?

Quote:

"The U.S. and Britain came to Iraq to establish a democratic system, but this scared the Iranians, so they negotiated with us and offered many things to attack the coalition," he said under a canopy of trees near his headquarters on Iraqi territory in the Qandil Mountains.

Kurds Launch Secret War In Iran

05-08-2008, 14:02 PM	#2 (permalink)
Officer of Engineers Moderator Scotch taster Join Date: 08-06-03 Posts: 14,884 Country:	I cannot believe that they are still a force to be reckoned with. __________________ Chimo

05-08-2008, 14:11 PM	#3 (permalink)
S-2 *Military Professional* Join Date: 09-11-06 Location: Bend, Oregon Posts: 1,925 Country:	OoE Reply Their sudden reappearance as a force of reckoning may conveniently stem from the increased pressure Iran is feeling for supporting shia militias in Iraq. A countervailing argument, if you will. __________________ "This aggression will not stand, man!" Jeff Lebowski

05-08-2008, 14:20 PM	#5 (permalink)
Dreadnought *Senior Contributor* Join Date: 05-12-05 Posts: 4,970 Country:	Sorry, We arent into blowing up places of worship. Yes we know extremeists take shelter and store weapons in mosques and preach alot of hatred. But we still dont blow them up. If we did then we would make it a point and do it with a tank round or aerial bomb in plain site so all the media could see. We are not the cowards that strap it to their bodies (men and women now) and then enter civilian population and detonate among the innocent. His accusations hold about as much water as his policies. Complete uteer ******! YOU ING COWARDS! REAP WHAT YOU SOW! __________________ Fortitude.....The strength to persist...The courage** to endure. Last edited by Dreadnought : 05-08-2008 at 14:24 PM.

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05-08-2008, 14:12 PM	#4 (permalink)
bolo121 Contributor Join Date: 12-19-07 Location: india Posts: 542 Country:	Well remember who was behind the monarchy back in the day, could it be a certain superpower getting a bit of its own back?

05-08-2008, 14:26 PM	#6 (permalink)
bolo121 Contributor Join Date: 12-19-07 Location: india Posts: 542 Country:	It could be sunni extremists who might be among those getting funds from the CIA, they probably hate Iran anyway so even if their American paymasters have certain rules, they might not follow them. After all the US is angry at Iran at its funding of militias in Iraq and would have been looking for any way to turn the tables.

05-08-2008, 15:25 PM	#10 (permalink)
Blademaster Military Enthusiast *Senior Contributor* Join Date: 08-15-03 Posts: 2,777	I think the monarchists are a convenient group to pin the blame on to rile up the population and give support to the Islamists mullahs. Nobody in Iran wants the monarchy back.

05-08-2008, 17:48 PM	#11 (permalink)
FOG3 Patron Join Date: 05-04-06 Posts: 167	What's the odds Iran would blow it up themselves to try to give themselves something to point the finger at the West?

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