US says warned Iran before IS twin bombings

WASHINGTON: The United States said on Thursday it had specifically alerted Iran to the threat of an attack before bombings claimed by the Islamic State group killed around 90 people in southeastern Kerman.

The two blasts on January 3 hit crowds at a memorial ceremony near the tomb of Qasem Soleimani, a top Revolutionary Guards general killed in a US drone strike in Iraq in 2020.

“Prior” to the Islamic State (IS) attack, the “US Government provided Iran with a private warning that there was a terrorist threat within Iranian borders,” a US official said on condition of anonymity.

“The US Government followed a longstanding ´duty to warn´ policy... We provide these warnings in part because we do not want to see innocent lives lost in terror attacks,” the official said, confirming earlier media reports.

The information passed to Iran was specific enough to have helped Tehran thwart the attack or lessen the casualty toll, US media reported.