Deadly blasts rock Iran as its leaders attend rally in show of defiance

Deadly explosions rocked Tehran close to a pro-government rally attended by top officials on Friday, as Israel and Iran unleashed fresh strikes in a war that has ignited the Middle East and threatens to torpedo the world economy. Since erupting on February 28 with US-Israeli attacks on Iran, the war has cascaded throughout the region, drawn in global powers, and sparked a major oil shock. AFP journalists in Tehran reported loud blasts over the city skies, as Israel’s military said it had hit more than 200 targets in western and central Iran in the past day.

Iran’s state media said at least one person was killed when blasts hit an area near a pro-government demonstration, where large crowds had gathered waving flags and brandishing banners reading “Death to America” and “Death to Israel.” “These attacks are out of fear, out of desperation,” said Ali Larijani, secretary of the Supreme National Security Council, who attended the rally to mark Quds Day, the last Friday of Ramadan. “One who is strong wouldn’t bomb demonstrations at all. It’s clear that it (the enemy) has failed,” said Larijani in a speech broadcast on state TV.

President Masoud Pezeshkian and Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi also attended the rally, while images shared by Iranian media the head of the judiciary being interviewed just as a blast occurred. Iran’s Revolutionary Guards, the ideological arm of the country’s military, warned Friday that any new anti-government protests would be met with a stronger response than in January, when several thousand people were killed. Iranians speaking to AFP under cover of anonymity have painted a grim picture of life under the bombs, with cities in ruins and cash running short.

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“People are desperately trying to withdraw their savings from the banks, as trust in them has vanished,” one 30-year-old woman in Kermanshah, western Iran, told AFP. “Bread is now rationed. The population is extremely tense and outraged.” The United Nations refugee agency has estimated that up to 3.2 million people have been displaced inside Iran since the war started.

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