2007 Zahedan bombing

31 (car bombing)

The 2007 Zahedan bombings occurred from 14–17 February in Zahedan, Sistan-Baluchestan Province, Iran. While Jundallah claimed responsibility, the Iranian government has accused the governments of Pakistan and the United States of complicity. The first bombing occurred at 6:30 a.m. on February 14 when a car filled with explosives stopped in front of a bus carrying Revolutionary Guards in Ahmadabad district. The car exploded, killing 18 and injuring 31 members of the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps.

A car filled with explosives stopped in front of a bus full of Revolutionary Guards in Ahmadabad district, Zahedan, Sistan-Baluchestan Province at 6:30 a.m. on 14 February 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. A number of Zahedan residents demonstrated in the streets, holding the coffins of the victims of the first bombing, chanting "death to hypocrites." 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. Five days later, the authorities announced the execution of Nasrollah Shanbezehi. He was hanged in public at the site of the bombing. He was said to have been tried and sentenced by a branch of the Revolutionary Court [1] after his televised “"confession”". In one of the pictures of his execution [2], where the noose is being placed around his neck, a bruise is clearly visible above his right eye. In his “"confession”", he reportedly said that he had joined PRMI\Jundallah three months previously, solely for financial reward, but other sources say that he was arrested because he was taking a picture of the bus with his mobile phone [3](Persian).