Unidentified gunmen targeted a military parade marking the start of 1980-88 Iran-Iraq war in southwestern Iran's Ahvaz city on Saturday, killing at least 24 people and injuring more than 50 others.
Among the victims, 12 were believed to be Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) personnel, making the it one of the worst ever attacks on Iran's elite force.
IRGC protects Shiite clerical rule since Iran's 1979 Islamic Revolution, preventing foreign interference as well as coups by the military or "deviant movements".
The Guardians also play a major role in Iran’s regional interests in countries such as Iraq, Syria and Yemen.
“There are a number of non-military victims, including women and children who had come to watch the parade,” the IRNA news agency quoted an unnamed official source as saying.
The semi-official Fars news agency said that four gunmen on a motorcycle, who were disguised as military personnel, carried out the attack.
Gunmen reportedly targeted a stand where Iranian officials had gathered to watch an annual event marking the start of the Islamic Republic’s 1980-88 war with Iraq.
Deputy Governor in Khuzestan province, Ali Hosein Hoseinzadeh, said that two gunmen were killed by security forces and two others were injured, reported Al-Jazeera.
Several parades are being conducted across Iran to mark the anniversary of the beginning of the Iran-Iraq war.
Ahvaz, the capital of Khuzestan province, is rich in oil reserves and has seen a number of attacks by the Arab separatists in the past.
The city was also one of the few venues of anti-government protests late last year.
There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the attack, but state television blamed “takfiri elements”, a reference to Sunni Muslim militants, for the attack.
Ahvaz is in the centre of Khuzestan province, where there have been sporadic protests by the Arab minority in predominantly Shi’ite Iran. The city was also one of the few venues of anti-government protests late last year.
(Agencies)
