The Islamic State group claimed a pair of attacks Wednesday on Iran’s parliament and the shrine of Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini.
Reports of casualties on Iranian media were contradictory, but according to Iranian state TV, twelve people were killed in both attacks.
At least 35 people were wounded. It was not immediately clear if these numbers include the attackers.
Iran’s Intelligence Ministry stated that it has foiled an additional terrorist plot.
The Islamic State claimed responsibility for the attacks through its Amaq news agency.
“Fighters from the Islamic State attacked Khomeini’s shrine and the Iranian parliament in Tehran,” Amaq reported.
If true, it would be the militant group’s first attacks in Iran.
The attacks began midmorning when assailants armed with Kalashnikov rifles stormed the parliament building. One of the attackers later blew himself up inside, where a session had been in progress, according to a statement carried by Iran’s state TV.
Deputy Interior Minister Mohammad Hossein Zolfaghari told Iran’s state TV the apparently male attackers wore women’s attire.
MP: One of terrorists attacking Iran’s Parliament arrested https://t.co/N7f9yOAEgy
— Press TV (@PressTV) June 7, 2017
Iran’s semi-official Tasnim news agency said all four parliament attackers have been killed. Earlier, according to the semi-official ISNA news agency, all entrance and exit gates at parliament were closed and lawmakers and reporters were ordered to remain in place inside the chamber.
Shortly after the parliement attack began, four people attacked the Mausoleum of Ayatollah Khomeini in southern Tehran.
One was a suicide bomber who detonated his belt, Iranian state TV said, calling the attackers “terrorists.” Another was killed by security forces. Two others were arrested at the site.
In another statement, the Islamic State’s news agency said the attacks on Khomeini’s shrine were carried out by two suicide bombers.
Tehran’s governor, Hossein Hashemi, said a worker was killed in the mausoleum attack and several others were injured.
Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, whose body rests in the mausoleum, launched the Islamic revolution in 1979.
In addition to being lethal, the attack on the shrine of Khomeini is symbolically stunning. As Iran’s first Supreme Leader, Khomeini is a towering figure in the country and was its revolutionary leader in the 1979 ouster of the shah.
Sunni extremists, including the Islamic State group, despise Shiite-majority Iran and are at war with Tehran’s proxies in Syria and Iraq. Iran has also come under attack in the past by Arab insurgents.
Two suicide bombings have rocked Teheran this morning (Wednesday), with 10 reported dead in the Iranian parliament in Teheran and 1 dead in a suicide bombing at the mausoleum shrine of Iranian revolutionary leader Ruhollah Khomeini. People are attempting to evacuate the Iranian Parliament building as the ongoing attack continues.
At approximately 10:15am gunmen charged at security officers guarding the Parliament’s front gate, shooting them.
It is not yet clear who the gunmen were, or if they have hostages. Reports claim the three fled north immediately following the shooting. An unknown number of people were injured in the attacks.
The Parliament’s gates have been closed to reporters, and several MPs are investigating the incident.
ISIS claims responsibility for the attack, marking the first time they claim a major operation inside Iran.