At a ceremony held in Iran on Wednesday to honor Commander Qassem Soleimani, who was killed by a U.S. drone in 2020, two explosions claimed approximately 100 lives and several injuries. Iranian officials blamed unknown “terrorists” for the deaths.

During a packed fourth-anniversary event at the cemetery where Soleimani is buried in the southeast city of Kerman, Iranian official media first reported a first explosion and then, after 20 minutes, a second one.

Nobody took credit for the explosions. According to a senior Biden administration source in Washington, the explosions seemed to be “a terrorist attack” similar to ones that Islamic State terrorists have previously carried out.

Iran’s president, Ayatollah Khamenei, promised retaliation for the deadly twin blasts, while President Ebrahim Raisi denounced the “heinous and inhumane crime”.

The deadliest blasts in Iran

According to Iranian media, the first device went off around 15:00 local time (11:30 GMT), roughly 700 meters (2,300 feet) from the Garden of Martyrs cemetery near the Saheb al-Zaman mosque in Kerman’s eastern suburbs.

About 15 minutes later, at a distance of about 1 km from the cemetery, there was a second explosion that was apparently directed towards those who had escaped the first one.

The governor of Kerman province informed state news agency Isna that both explosions occurred outside of security checks and that the authorities were certain that bombs were the cause of both. However, he added that it was still unclear if they were set up remotely or by suicide bombers.

Earlier, sources quoted by the radical Tasnim news agency, which is connected to Iran’s Revolutionary Guards, claimed that “two bags carrying bomb” had seemingly detonated by “remote control”.

According to a witness cited by the Isna news agency, “We were walking towards the cemetery when a car suddenly stopped behind us and a waste bin containing a bomb exploded.”

Iran’s Suspicion List

Mohammad Jamshidi, President Ebrahim Raisi’s political deputy, laid the responsibility on the US and Israel. But the US rejected any notion that Washington was engaged, claiming it had no evidence of any involvement from Israel.

Given that Sunni jihadist organizations like Islamic State (IS) and Arab separatists have attacked both civilians and security personnel in the nation recently, suspicion may be directed towards them.

The Iranian general Qassem Soleimani, whose militias had been fighting the group in Iraq for years, was at the moment welcomed by IS.

Prior to his death in a US drone strike in neighboring Iraq in 2020, Soleimani was regarded as the second most powerful person in Iran, after the supreme leader.

The attack on Wednesday takes place in the midst of increased tensions in the area following the apparent Israeli drone strike in Lebanon that killed the deputy leader of Hamas, a Palestinian organization supported by Iran.

The bombings were denounced by a number of nations, including Turkey and Russia, and the UN Secretary-General demanded that those who carried out the attacks be held accountable. A number of Gulf nations, also denounced the terrorist attacks, while Chinese President Xi Jinping conveyed his sympathies to the president of Iran.

The Islamic Republic of Iran, which has previously seen similar attacks from a variety of groups, including Islamic State, reported that this attack was the bloodiest in its history with 211 people injured and 95 deaths, down from 103, according to Iranian Health Minister Bahram Eynollahi, speaking to state TV.

Who was Qassem Soleimani?

Iranian policy throughout the region was formulated by Qassem Soleimani, who held the position of commander of the Quds Force, the Revolutionary Guards’ international operations branch.

He was in command of the covert operations of the Quds Force and its provision of advice, capital, armaments, intelligence, and logistical assistance to ally governments and armed organizations, such as Hamas and Hezbollah.

The 2020 drone operation was authorized by then-US President Donald Trump, who called Soleimani “the number-one terrorist anywhere in the world” and said that soldiers operating under his leadership had killed hundreds of American citizens and personnel in the preceding 20 years.

The Iranian regime filed arrest warrants for Mr. Trump and other leaders after accusing the US of engaging in international terrorism.

Tensions are already escalating between Iran, US, and Israel with the ongoing Israel-Hamas War. With this attack, its seems the events will take a further leap into conflict.