IRAN: Was it a bomb or an accident?

Authorities upped the casualty count from a Saturday night explosion in the southern Iranian city of Shiraz to 12 dead and 202 injured.

The explosion took place in a Shiite Muslim house of worship during a talk by a controversial cleric.  Mohammed Anjivinejad is known for his denunciations of the Wahhabi Islam that drives Sunni extremists, as well as the Bahai faith, a small religion born in Iran during the 19th century that Shiite clerics consider heretical [UPDATE: See note below]. Check out the English-language section of his group's website.

Iranian officials are pulling out all stops to emphasize that the blast may not have been a politically motivated bombing but an accident. One official told the semi-official Fars news agency that the blast could have been an accident. According to province police chief Ali Moayeri:

The incident could have happened as a result of negligence since there was an exhibition commemorating the war not long ago. The munitions left at the site may have caused this explosion.

Indeed, catastrophic accidents caused by gross negligence and incompetence are not at all uncommon in Iran.

The explosion coincided with an upswell of tensions between Iran and the U.S. over alleged Iranian support for Iraqi militants. Iran has accused the U.S. and its allies of backing anti-Iranian armed groups, including Iranian Arab separatists accused of a series of bombings in 2005 and 2006.

Iranian foreign ministry spokesman Mohammed Ali Hosseini said the government would have no official comment on the blast until the investigation was complete.

"So far no group has taken responsibility," he said.

—Borzou Daragahi in Beirut and Ramin Mostaghim in Tehran

Photo: An Iranian police officer and others look through debris at the scene of an explosion in a mosque on Saturday in Shiraz. Credit: Associated Press

UPDATE: We added a comma after the word "extremists" to distinguish between Wahabbi Islam, which drives Sunni extremists, and the Bahai faith, which is also denounced by the religious group but has nothing to do with Wahabbi Islam.

Comments

[v racer]

Let's all hope that this is the beginning of their end.

[J. Smythe]

Don't look now. It was Super Jew, Israeli spies, US agent s or the dreaded Iron Man. Yes well get a full report from the Iranians....right.

[Stanley Kerns]

American Churches are rarely the scene of blasts--mostly because terrorists don't use american churches as bomb factories. More likely, in my opinion is that the speaker was the intended victims--that he lived is evidence that the terrorists really are a dumb as they look.
Leo0301

[JonSE]

Bomb or accident? Neither. It was God bringing down retribution onto an evil nation. Buddha doesn't like ugly. What goes around comes around. F**k with the bull and get the horn. Expect more of this type of thing. The universe insists upon balance.

[CJ]

This Wahabbism / Baha'i connection the reporter invented makes no sense. How is it that the most radically fundamentalist branch of Sunni Islam (Wahhabi) supposedly "drives" the Baha'i Faith?

The only possible connection between the Baha'i Faith and Wahhabi Islam is that this radical cleric Mohammed Anjivinejad denounces them both regularly in his sermons.

I would assume Anjivinejad hates Wahhabis because they are not the right type of Muslim. He hates Baha'is because they are not Muslim at all.

I'm sure he also often denounces Christians, Jews and Americans. Does that mean they are also Wahhabis?

Very strange indeed.

[latme]

To Kayvan: I apologize if the sentence was unclear. We didn't mean that Wahabbi Islam drives the Bahai faith at all. The "as well as" referred to the denunciations of the cleric, who speaks out against Bahais and Wahabbis. The Bahai religion has nothing to do with Wahabbi Islam.

[kaveh]

Since when Wahhabi Islam drives the Baha'i faith? According to whom, Mohammed Anjivinejad? I am certain Baha'is would take issue. Please state that as an opinion as opposed to a fact.

[Anon]

No way was this a "negligent accident". This must have been a deliberate attack and the authorities are trying to cover it up.