TEHRAN – On January 3, two Daesh terrorists detonated themselves while thousands of mourners were heading to the tomb of noted Iranian General Qassem Soleimani in his home city of Kerman. 

The terrorist attack brutally killed nearly 100 civilians, providing the U.S. with an opportunity to kill two birds with one stone - appear as a potent intelligence power and undermine Iran’s security apparatus. 

A few weeks after the Kerman attack, while Iranian security forces were busy chasing the culprits and already detained some of them, the Wall Street Journal broke the news that the United States had relayed an alert message to Iran before the attack that the Daesh Khorasan offshoot was preparing a deadly attack inside Iran, but Iranian authorities ignored the U.S. warning.

“Washington passed actionable intelligence to Tehran about the plot that killed 84 and wounded many more,” the Journal said of the warning.  

The Tehran Times can confirm that Iran received the message, but it was so vague and ill-intentioned that it could have by no means thwarted the Kerman attack.

To begin with, the message included no information on the timing and location of the terrorist attack. The Tehran Times learned that the American message did not mention where and when the Daesh terrorist attack might happen, leaving Iranian authorities in the dark about the exact terrorist movements. This came at a time when Iranian security forces had their premonition of an imminent attack, something that prompted them to double down on security measures across the country. 

Of note, in the months leading to the terrorist attack, Iranian security forces foiled dozens of terrorist attacks and arrested those involved before they could carry out their sinister plans. The American message comes against this backdrop of amplified security measures. That may explain why the American message was of little use for Iran as it was easy for counterterrorism officials to predict such an assault. 

The American message was delivered through diplomatic channels orally in December, which further reduced its seriousness. That calls into question the actionability of the U.S. message. If it had intended to help Iran prevent a deadly attack, the U.S. could have easily shared names, locations, and timing with Iran in writing. 

Observers believe that the U.S. move intended to exonerate the U.S. of any accusation regarding its link to terrorist outfits in the region. Americans have long claimed that they care about the lives of civilians even if they are from adversarial countries. The publication of the U.S. message was aimed at achieving this reputational goal. In reality, however, the U.S. has been implicated in fostering terrorism in the West Asia region and using it to advance its political agenda. 

By assuming the role of savior in the Kerman attack, the Americans also sought to undercut the credibility of Iran’s security forces which have done everything in their power to prevent the heinous attack. 

By Sadegh Fereydounabadi