Intelligence Ministry: Terrorists in Kerman bombings killed, arrested

Iran’s Intelligence Ministry says its forces have killed two terrorists and arrested some others linked to the recent Daesh-claimed terrorist attack on the fourth martyrdom anniversary of top anti-terror commander Lieutenant General Qassem Soleimani in the southeastern Iranian city of Kerman.

According to Press TV, the ministry said in a statement on Friday that the terrorists had been involved in the “orchestration and implementation” of the deadly blasts in Kerman on January 3, during which 94 people lost their lives and 211 others sustained injuries.

The statement said the two Daesh Takfiri terrorists, who entered Iran a few days after the criminal incident in Kerman to conduct another operation in the city, were besieged by the Ministry forces and were both killed in fire exchanges.

The Intelligence Ministry said the two terrorists were “non-Iranian nationals” and had planned a two-stage scenario involving an armed attack on one of the police stations in Kerman and setting a “booby trap” on the way of police reinforcements, both of which were foiled.

According to the statement, the ministry discovered and seized with the neutralized terrorists “two very strong homemade bombs” weighing 20 kilograms, 10 electric detonators, four non-electric detonators, one US MP4 machine gun with eight magazines and 278 cartridges, one AK-47 machine gun with five magazines and 181 cartridges, seven hand grenades, two normal and night vision cameras, two transceivers, three remote controllers, 12 meters of wire with gunpowder and electric fuses as well as significant amounts of other related equipment.

The ministry also announced the apprehension of Mohammad Imran Tanvir, nicknamed "Abu Imran", a bomb-making specialist and one of the leaders of Daesh-Khorasan, which is affiliated with the Daesh Takfiri terrorist group.

The Intelligence Ministry forces also said they had arrested “Mahtab”, another ring leader of the terrorist group, who is currently under interrogation and entered the country under the guise of a worker.

The statement also said several other terrorists had been arrested, among them were Daesh leaders planning to stage acts of terror in various parts of the country, including the holy city of Mashhad.

The Intelligence Ministry said Mohammad Adel Aref, known as "Adel Panjshiri", had also been tracked down and identified during the latest intelligence operation. Being at large in the present time and suspected to have holed up in a neighborhood in western Tehran, Adel was charged with a suicide bomb attack at the Kabul University in Afghanistan, among other convictions.

SS