Pakistan based Jaish-e-Mohammed a prime suspect in Chabahar attack
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New Delhi, December 7: Pakistan-based Ansar al-Forghan, having linkages with the barred Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM), is suspected to have carried out the terrorist attack in Iranian port town of Chabahar on Thursday that killed four policemen and injured nearly 42.
On Thursday, India was quick to condemn the attack. “India strongly condemns today’s despicable terrorist attack in Chabahar, Iran. We express our condolences to the government and the people of Iran and the families of the victims of this attack. We wish speedy recovery to those injured. The perpetrators behind this dastardly attack should be brought to justice expeditiously,” the external affairs ministry said in a statement.
JeM, held responsible by India for the 2001 attack on Parliament, is headed by the UN designated terrorist Maulana Masood Azhar. India is seeking UN Security Council ban against Azhar but China has been holding out, a key irritant in Sino-Indian ties.
An Iranian official says the recent terrorist attack in the port city of Chabahar in southeastern Iran was plotted by the enemies of Iran which seek to hamper foreign investment in Iran’s Makran coasts.
“Thursday terrorist attack was part of the enemy’s plot to disrupt the security of Chabahar, which is strategically important for all-out development of Iran, Afghanistan, Turkmenistan and other Central Asian states.”, said Mansour Haqiqatpour, a national security advisor to Iranian parliament speaker.
“The enemies seek to turn the regional balance into their own favour but the intelligent units of the Islamic Republic will foil their plots.”, he added.
“Given the clear-cut strategic approach of the Leader of the Islamic Revolution towards the development of Makran coasts in south-eastern Iran, we are going to witness the sustainable development of the region in the next years.”
The attack occurred in Iran's southern port city of Chabahar managed killing four policemen and 42 other people being wounded in a suicide car bomb attack on a police headquarters on Thursday. According to Rahmdel Bameri, the Governor of Sistan-Baluchestan province, bomb-filled vehicle was used to target the police station by the suicide attacker.
The governor of Chabahar elaborated on the motives behind the terrorist attacks in Chabahar and said as the only pacific port of the Islamic Republic, Chabahar port city is highly significant for Iran and can play a leading role as an energy hub connecting regional and Central Asian states together through Oman Sea in the future.
"Police stopped the explosive-laden car and started firing at the driver who then set off the explosion near the police headquarters in Chabahar," said Bameri.
Earlier in the month of September, on sidelines of the Mobility Summit organized by NITI Aaayog, Iran handed over the strategic Chabahar Port to India for proper maintenance and operation of the port. The Chabahar port which is easily accessible from India's western coast, is increasingly seen as a counter to Pakistan's Gwadar Port located at distance of around 80 km from Chabahar.
Today China and Pakistan are seeking to expand Gwadar port in Pakistan to turn it into a leading hub. On the other side, in a geopolitical rivalry, Iran along with its friendly states like Russia, India and Afghanistan are after expanding Chabahar port, resulted in witnessing some mischievous acts made by our regional rivals in the form of terrorist attacks.