AFP reports 11 people killed and at least 191 wounded in the aftermath of an explosion that “ripped through a mosque in Iran’s southern city of Shiraz during evening prayers by a prominent cleric, officials said on Sunday.”
Mystery surrounded the cause of Saturday’s blast, which some officials insisted had been triggered by an accident but others said could have been caused by a bomb.
The massive explosion in the men’s section of the mosque took place at around 9:00 pm (1630 GMT) during an evening prayer sermon by prominent local cleric Mohammad Anjavinejad, Iranian media reported.
Eleven people were killed and 191 wounded, local emergency services official Mohammad Javad Mouradian told the official IRNA news agency.
“The incident could have happened as a result of negligence. A while ago at this site there was an exhibition commemorating the (1980-1988) Iran-Iraq war,” Fars province police chief Commander Ali Moayeri told the Fars news agency.
“The munitions left at the site could have caused this explosion,” he added. The agency said he ruled out an act of sabotage.
Who puts on a war “exhibition” with live munitions–and apparently in considerable amounts?
Charles Johnson adds, “Very few details yet, but one suspect would be the MEK: Mujahadeen-e-Khalq (Iranian rebels).”
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