Iran arrests 2 over Mahabad attack

Police say they have arrested two people in connection with a terrorist attack in northwestern Iranian city of Mahabad, which killed 12 people and wounded scores of others.

The blast took place during a military parade in West Azarbaijan Province on Wednesday. Provincial officials say ten of the victims are women.

The bomb was planted inside a pine tree near the site of the parade as people were commemorating the 1980-1988 Iraqi-imposed war on Iran.

Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesman Ramin Mehmanparast strongly condemned the bombing and blamed it on Israel.

“The terrorist attack in Mahabad is the reaction of Israeli agents and the supporters of the Zionist regime [of Israel] to the country’s defensive prowess in the Sacred Defense Week and the successes of the Islamic Republic of Iran’s active diplomacy in the biggest international arena in New York,” he said.

He said that the enemies are targeting the Iranian nation’s resilience, but they do not know that such measures have no effect on the will of the people and the officials of the Islamic Republic.

Interior Minister Mostafa Mohammad-Najjar condemned the attack and said the perpetrators of the bombing would be identified and brought to justice.

Parliament Speaker Ali Larijani said the enemy sought to create division between Iranians by this attack but they were mistaken to think that they could reach their objective.

US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has denounced the terrorist attack saying, “I condemn the bombing targeting Iranians attending a parade in Mahabad today and offer my sympathy to the families and loved ones of those injured and killed.”

Emir of Kuwait Sheikh Sabah Al Ahmed Al Jaber Al Sabah also condemned the “terrorist attack which targeted innocent people and is against the tenets of Islam and humane values,” in a message to Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.