A double terrorist attack in Iran, which hit the heart of Iran's democracy - the parliament - and the symbol of the Islamic revolution - the Mausoleum of Ayatollah Khomeini - was a real shock for the republic, the Orientalists said, speaking with correspondents of Vestnik Kavkaza, commenting on the shooting in the parliament and the blast at the mausoleum.
The senior research fellow of the Department of Near and Middle East at the Institute for Oriental Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Lana Ravandi-Fadai, stressed the extraordinary character of the incident. It was a real shock for the Iranians and many Iranian experts, because Iran is a fairly calm country. Terrorist attacks take place sometimes, but mainly at the borders, in areas where Baloch and Kurds live. But starting from the first term of Rouhani's presidency, the situation is controlled even in the most tense points of the republic," she recalled.
According to Lana Ravandi-Fadai, there are forces behind the terrorist attack, which are trying to violate such stability in Iran. "We see that at the recent elections the people preferred the president who is in favor of open politics and the liberalization of society. And the people voted for the candidate who will strictly observe the nuclear deal. And if some special services or ISIS are behind the terrorist act, their goal is to destabilize the country and the region," the expert said.
She drew attention to the elaboration of the terrorist action. "This action looks very well prepared, and information about it is contradictory. Perhaps, the state media may officially start to hide some information in order not to spread panic among the people, because the organizer can be both a group inside the country, or outside," Lana Ravandi-Fadai suggested, adding that the terrorist attacks will inevitably provoke a reaction not only among the Iranians, but also in neighboring countries.
The Director of the Analytical Center of the Institute of International Studies, Doctor of Political Science Andrey Kazantsev, listed several reasons for today's terrorist attacks. "First, Iran is involved in a very serious geopolitical confrontation with its neighbors in the Arab world, primarily Saudi Arabia and Qatar, that is, terrorist attacks could be organized by them. Secondly, there is a serious opposition in Iran, and there are terrorist actions in Iran since the Islamic Revolution, although there have not been any recently. But nevertheless, there is a certain wing that once organized terrorist attacks against Imam Khomeini and his supporters," he recalled.
"There is a possible connection with neighboring Afghanistan, as well as variants related to the drug trade, because a very large drug trafficking route passes through Iran, which Tehran is actively struggling and it could also cause attacks. If we talk about the impact of these terrorist attacks on the situation in the Middle East, It is already extremely complex, and these incidents show that there are no more safe places in the region," Andrey Kazantsev pointed out.
The orientalist Vyacheslav Matuzov, offered to look at the incident in a broader context. "I see the relationship between the latest developments in the Middle East region. After the new US administration came to power, especially after President Donald Trump's visit to Saudi Arabia, a certain wave emerged, which driving force is the representation of Iran as the main source of terrorism. Now they started to attribute activities of ISIS to Iran, although it would seem that Iran is conducting a merciless war against ISIS in Syria. If these circumstances are compared, it becomes clear that today's explosions in Tehran is not an accident," he said.
According to the expert, the diplomatic attack on Qatar is also linked to with the same anti-Iran Washington's program. "Since Iran was designated as the main threat of international terrorism following Trump's visit to Riyadh, it can be assumed that if hostilities begin against Qatar, Iran will inevitably be involved in the fighting, since it has already announced its full support of Qatar. I'm afraid that it is the idea to provoke Iran to intervene in the Arab affairs, which will become an excuse for the US to strike against Iran. It will help to realize the idea influenced by Israel, as Israel is actively pushing the idea that Iran is the main threat to world peace," Vyacheslav Matuzov noted.
"Explosions in sacred places, as the mausoleum of Imam Khomeini is a sacred place for the Islamic Republic of Iran, while the parliament is a sacred place for secular people and politicians of the country, are the provocation. I consider it as a warning to Iran on the eve of preparing major changes in the political landscape of the entire Middle East," the political scientist-orientalist concluded.
