Numerous civilians, including men, women, children, government officials, activists,secularintellectuals and clerics have been victims ofassassination,terrorism, or violence againstnon-combatants, over the course of modernIranian history.[1] Among the most notable acts of terrorism inIran in the 20th century have been the 1978Cinema Rex fire and the 1990schain murders of Iran.
SeveralIranian prime ministers,president, and ministers were also assassinated by militant groups during the 20th century. Some notable victims includePrime MinistersMohammad Javad Bahonar,Shapour Bakhtiar,Amir-Abbas Hoveida,Abdolhossein Hazhir andHaj Ali Razmara. AlsoPresidentMohammad Ali Rajai, Head of JudiciaryMohammad Beheshti, Chief Commander of the ArmyAli Sayad Shirazi, and Minister of LaborDariush Forouhar.
Alleged, suspected, or admitted perpetrators of terrorism in Iran span a wide range, including Islamic fundamentalists/revivalists (Fadayan-e Islam,Jundallah,Cinema Rex fire, Taliban in a1998 killing of Iranian diplomats in Afghanistan), Israel or other foreign enemies of the Islamic Republic's nuclear program (Assassination of Iranian nuclear scientists), unidentified anti-Shia extremists (2010 Chabahar suicide bombing,1994 Imam Reza shrine bomb explosion), Islamist enemies of the Islamic Republic, possibly with help from foreign enemies (Haft-e Tir bombing), hardline Iranian officials (Chain murders of Iran).
ShahMohammad Khan Qajar was assassinated in 1797 in the city of Susa(Shushi), the capital ofKarabakh khanate, after about 16 years in power. While Mohammad Khan Qajar's assassination might be called part of the ancient practice of palace intrigue, or motivated simply by fear and/or revenge, the May 1, 1896, killing of ShahNasser al-Din Shah Qajar[2] conforms more closely to the modern phenomenon ofterrorism as a tool of a political movement. Nasser al-Din was shot and killed byMirza Reza Kermani, a follower ofJamal al-Din al-Afghani, an early promoter of modernPan-Islamism. Al-Afghani is reported to have said of the assassination, "surely it was a good deed to kill this bloodthirsty tyrant."[3]
Fadayan-e Islam was anIslamic fundamentalist secret society founded in Iran in 1946, by a theology student namedNavab Safavi. Safavi sought to "purify Islam" in Iran by ridding it of "corrupting individuals" by means of carefully planned assassinations of certain leading intellectual and political figures.[4] Some of its targets in the late 1940s and early 1950s included secularist authorAhmad Kasravi, former premier Abdul-Hussein Hazhir, Education and Culture Minister Ahmad Zangeneh, and Prime Minister Haj-Ali Razmara. Such was the groups influence and success that it was able to use its powerful clerical supporters to free its assassins from punishment. In the mid-1950s, after the consolidation of the power of the Shah, the group was suppressed and Safavi executed. The group survived as supporters of the AyatollahKhomeini and theIslamic Revolution of Iran.
On August 19, 1978, more than 420 people were killed when the Cinema Rex in Abadan was set on fire during a showing of the movieThe Deers. The incident was initially blamed onMuhammad Reza Pahlavi's regime, which contributed to the Sha's overthrow.[5][6][7][8]
On June 28, 1981, a bombkilled 70 high-ranking officials of the Islamic Republic Party, including Chief JusticeMohammad Beheshti who was the second highest official afterAyatollah Khomeini at the time. The Iranian government said the culprits could beSAVAK, or theIraqi regime, or thePeople's Mojahedin of Iran.[9] According to Kenneth Katzman, "there has been much speculation among academics and observers that these bombings may have actually been planned by senior IRP leaders, to rid themselves of rivals within the IRP."[10]
On 30 August 1981, the office of Prime MinisterMohammad Javad Bahonar was bombed, killing Bahonar, PresidentMohammad Ali Rajai, and six other Iranian government officials.[11] The briefcase bombing came two months after theHafte Tir bombing. According to sources, nobody "knew exactly who had been in the room at the time of the detonation." Eventually, there were three participants that had been unaccounted for, includingMasoud Keshmiri, President Rajai, and Prime Minister Bahonar. It was later revealed that both Rajai and Bahonar had died in the explosion.[12] More than twenty suspects were identified in the subsequent investigation, including Masoud Keshmiri, Ali Akbar Tehrani, Mohammad Kazem Peiro Razawi, Khosro Ghanbari Tehrani, Javad Ghadiri, Mohsen Sazgara, Taghi Mohammadi, and Habibollah Dadashi.[13]
Since the founding of the Islamic Republic, dissidents in Iran have complained of unsolved murders and disappearances of intellectuals and political activists who had been critical of the Islamic Republic system in some way. In 1998 these complaints came to a head with the killing of three dissident writers, political leaderDariush Forouhar and his wife in the span of two months, in what became known as theChain Murders or 1998 Serial Murders of Iran.[14][15][16] The deputy security official of the Ministry of Information,Saeed Emami, was arrested for the killings and later committed suicide, although many believe higher level officials were responsible for the killings. According to Iranterror.com, "it was widely assumed that [Emami] was murdered in order to prevent the leak of sensitive information aboutMinistry of Intelligence and Security operations, which would have compromised the entire leadership of the Islamic Republic."[17]
On June 20, 1994, the explosion of a bomb in a prayer hall ofImam Reza shrine inMashhad[18] killed at least 25 people.[19] The Iranian government officially blamedMujahedin-e-Khalq for the incident to avoid sectarian conflict betweenShias andSunnis.[20] However, the Pakistani dailyThe News International reported on March 27, 1995, "Pakistani investigators have identified a 24-year-old religious fanatic Abdul Shakoor residing in Lyari inKarachi, as an important Pakistani associate ofRamzi 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."[21] According to the Jamestown Foundation Terrorism Monitor, "a report produced by the [Iranian]Ministry of Intelligence in October 1994 identified the culprits as operatives of Pakistan'sLashkar-e-Jhangvi the sister organization ofSipah-e-Sahaba."[22]
On August 8, 1998, theTaliban, assisted byAl-Qaeda, attacked the Afghan city ofMazar-i-Sharif, killing 11 Iranian diplomats and journalists along with thousands of Afghan civilians, in what was considered an attack motivated bytakfir againstShias.[23]
More infuriating for Iran was thatPakistan'sISI had guaranteed their security.
Tehran had earlier contacted the Pakistan government to guarantee the security of their Consulate, because the Iranians knew that ISI officers had driven into Mazar with the Taliban. The Iranians had thought that Dost Mohammed's unit had been sent to protect them so had welcomed them at first. .... At first the Taliban refused to admit the whereabouts of the diplomats but then as international protests and Iranian fury increased, they admitted that the diplomats had been killed, not on official orders but by renegade Taliban. But reliable sources said that Dost Mohammed had spoken toMullah Omar on his wireless to ask whether the diplomats should be killed and Omar had given the go-ahead."[24]
Iran was also angry at the lack of support from Western countries, particularly America, which considered Iran an enemy. Referring to the attack, Iranian Supreme Leader Khamenei alleges that "neither the Americans, nor the Europeans, who are now pursuing Al-Qaeda agents as members of the most dangerous terror organization, showed any reaction at all."[25]
The Taliban were also thought to have "secretly" backed anti-regime Iranian groups. These groups received weapons and support from the Taliban and "Iranians were convinced that the Pakistanis were also sponsoring them." The group sought to overthrow the Shia Iranian government, despite the fact that Iran was overwhelmingly Shia.[26]
The Iranian government responded to the killings by putting its forces on alert and moving troops to the Afghan border, though tensions would subside.
Jundallah, aSunni IslamistBaloch insurgent organization based inBalochistan, claims to be fighting for the rights of Sunni in Iran.[27] It is believed to have 1,000 fighters and claims to have killed 400 Iranian soldiers.[28] The group has been identified as aterrorist organization by Iran and Pakistan[29] and many believe it is linked toAl-Qaeda.[30] It is also believed to receive support from the US government.[31]
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 February 14, 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.[32]
Jundallah, an organization some alleged to be affiliated withAl Qaeda,[33] claimed responsibility for the attack on February 15 and said it is retaliation for the executions of those accused of carrying out theAhvaz Bombings.[citation needed] The Iranian government 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.[34]
Hossein Ali Shahriari, Zahedan's representative in parliament, rhetorically asked, "Why does our diplomatic apparatus not seriously confront thePakistani government for harboring bandits and regime's enemies? Why do security, military and police officials not take more serious action?"[34]
TheAhvaz bombings were a series of bombings that took place mostly inAhvaz. The bombings were linked to previous suppression of the Arabunrest in Ahvaz, occurred earlier in 2005. The first bombing came ahead of the presidential election on June 12. Interior Ministry official Mohammad Hussein Motahar said at the time:[35]
A terrorist bombing inside a mosque inShiraz in April 2008 killed 14 people including 10 men, 2 women and 2 children. More than 200 were also injured. Responsibility for the attack has not been determined.
According to Western news reports, at least 15 people were killed and scores wounded in a July 2008 explosion in Tehran. Initially there was a news black-out on the explosion in Iran and Revolutionary Guards launched an investigation into the causes of the blast and the possibility that sabotage was involved. There had been "a number of unexplained explosions in recent months." The convoy was reported to be carrying arms for Hezbollah when it exploded.[36]
The 2010 Chabahar suicide bombing was carried out on December 14, 2010 by twosuicide bombers, who blew themselves up in the crowdedShiite Muslim mourning procession in SoutheasternIraniancoastal city ofChabahar outside Imam Husain Mosque.[37] The bombings took place in the day of Tasua, when Shiite Muslims gathered there to commemorate the martyrdom ofHusayn ibn Ali, the grandson ofMuhammad.[38] The bombing resulted in killing at least 38 people.[39]
Four Iranian nuclear scientists were assassinated between 2010 and 2012, and a fifth was wounded in a failed assassination attempt. The Iranian government has accused Israel of committing the attacks, a claim which Israel has denied.[40][41]
On June 7, 2017,two simultaneous terrorist attacks were carried out by five terrorists belonging to theIslamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL). TheIranian Parliament building and theMausoleum of Ruhollah Khomeini, both inTehran,Iran, were hit, leaving 17 civilians dead and 43 wounded.[42][43]
On September 22, 2018, a military parade was attacked inAhvaz, a southwestern Iranian city.[44][45]
On December 6, 2018, a suicide bomber detonated his car near a police station killing two policemen and wounding dozens more.[46]
On April 5, 2022, astabbing attack took place at theImam Reza Shrine inMashhad,Iran, killing twoShiaclerics and wounding a third. The perpetrator, identified as foreign national Abdullatif Moradi, was immediately arrested along with six others accused of assisting him. The victims were active members of non-profit constructing and cultural communities.[47]
The attacker, Abdullatif Moradi, a 21-year-old ethnicUzbek illegal immigrant fromAfghanistan,[48] has been called as a "Takfiri who viewedShia Muslims asheretics and believed their blood should be spilled". Moradi and his brother were reportedly active in social networks under the names of "Abdullatif al-Salafi", "Hassan Moradi" and "Abulaqib al-Mowahid", criticizing Shia Muslims and promotingTakfiri thoughts. (The "Abdullatif al-Salafi" alias indicatesSalafi sympathies.)[49] He wasexecuted by hanging in June 2022.[50]
On October 26, 2022, a gunman shot and killed 15 pilgrims at theShah Cheragh shrine inShiraz, including women and children, and wounding scores of others. The man was shot by security forces and later died of his wounds.[51] Daesh (orISIS) "took responsibility for the attack", but according to Iranian state media, they are "being masterminded by the West and Israel".[52]
On August 13, 2023, another gunman, later identified as Rahmatollah Nowruzo, shot and killed two and injuring seven at the same shrine. He was convicted and sentenced to death twice for "moharebeh" (waging war against God) and other offenses on September 22, 2023, by a Revolutionary court.[51]
According to a statement by Iran's Intelligence Ministry reported by Iranian state media, the ministry's forces had captured a "Daesh-linked" loyalist who performed the "most pivotal" role in the August 13 attack on the shrine, and that 196Takfiri terrorists were caught or killed between the Ocoter 2022 and August 2023 attacks on the holy site, all of whom were non-Iranians. They were from Azerbaijan, Tajikistan, and Afghanistan.[51]
According to state media, "30 simultaneous terrorist attacks" were set to take place on the one year anniversary of "the riots that broke out in September 2022", i.e. on the date ofMahsa Amini's death at the hands of security forces after she was arrested for allegedlybad hijab.[53] "Iran's intelligence ministry declared its forces neutralized" the planned attacks and arrested 28 terrorists".[53]
On January 3, 2024, between 15:50 and 16:00 (Iran time),two bombs exploded during a commemorative ceremony marking theassassination of Qasem Soleimani inKerman.
The twin explosions struck a procession going towardsSoleimani'stomb in theGolzar Shohada cemetery,[54] around theSaheb al-Zaman mosque, to commemorate the fourth anniversary ofhis death.[55] The first explosion occurred 700metres fromSoleimani's grave near aparking lot, while the second occurred one kilometre away atShohada Street, where many had fled.[56][57]
At least 89 people werekilled and at least another 171 wereinjured,[58] including threeparamedics who responded to the site of the firstexplosion and were caught in the secondblast.[59]
Most of the fatalities were believed to have been killed in the second explosion.[56] Several of the injured were trampled in the panic that followed the explosions.[60]
TheIranian government declared thebombings aterrorist attack,[55] making it the deadliest such incident in thecountry since 1979.[56]
On January 18, 2025, Ali Razini and Mohammad Moghiseh, two senior Islamic judges, were shot and assassinated at the Tehran'sSupreme Court of Iran by a gunman who committed suicide. Another judge and a bodyguard also were injured in the attack.[61]
In addition to attacks perpetrated in the country of Iran, since the 1979Iranian Revolution, there have been lethal attacks that took place in other countries but were made possible at some level by the Islamic Republic of Iran.
Specifically, thegovernment of the Islamic Republic has been accused by several countries of training, financing, arming, and providing safe havens for non-state militant actors. Examples includeHezbollah in Lebanon,Hamas in Palestine, and other Palestinian groups (Islamic Jihad (PIJ) and thePopular Front for the Liberation of Palestine-General Command (PFLP-GC)). These groups aredesignated terrorist groups by a number of countries and international bodies; however, Iran considers such groups to be "national liberation movements" with a right to self-defense in the face ofIsraeli military occupation.[62]
A number of countries (Argentina,Thailand, Albania,[63] Denmark,[64] France,[65] India,[66] Kenya,[67] United States)[68][69][70][71][72] have also accused Iran's government itself (usually in the form of theIslamic Revolutionary Guards Corps) of plotting assassinations or bombings against perceived enemies of the Iranian government in their countries.
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