Iran's elite Revolutionary Guards have pointed the finger at regional rival Saudi Arabia - a close U.S. ally - which Tehran accuses of funding extremism and groups including IS.
At least 12 people were killed when six attackers mounted simultaneous gun and suicide bomb attacks on Iran's Parliament building and the tomb of the republic's revolutionary founder, in one of the most audacious assaults to hit Tehran in decades. He did not elaborate.
Larijani also criticized a Wednesday decision by the U.S. Senate to move forward on a new set of sanctions against Iran, including its elite Revolutionary Guards, a move that came on the same day as the Tehran attacks.
Analysts suggest that the twin attacks in Iran by IS, whose members are largely Sunni, reflect the shrinkage of the group's "caliphate" in Syria and Iraq under diverse pressure from Shiite militias and airstrikes by a US-led coalition.
"The five known terrorists. after joining the Daesh (IS) terrorist group, left the country and participated in crimes carried out by this terrorist group in Mosul and Raqqa", the ministry said in a statement. It showed bloody pictures of the men's corpses and identified them by their first names only, saying it didn't want to release their last names due to security and privacy concerns for their families.
Intelligence chief Mahmud Alavi reported that the extremists, all killed during the attacks, had fought in the ranks of IS in Iraq and Syria. Saudi Arabia has said it was not involved. It offered to help the country by re-routing flights that have been shut out of Saudi and UAE airspace, and shipping food that can no longer be imported via the land border.
Feud over Qatar deepens conflicts across Arab world
Gabriel agreed, stressing that "this is the hour of diplomacy". It's also the world's largest exporter of liquid national gas. In all, 59 people and entities were listed.
Hezbollah is seen as a proxy to Iran in Syria and Lebanon and has aligned itself with Tehran amid mounting regional tensions with Saudi Arabia and other Gulf states. A statement issued Wednesday evening stopped short of alleging direct Saudi involvement but called it "meaningful" that the attacks followed Trump's visit to Saudi Arabia, where he strongly asserted Washington's support for Riyadh. The Islamic State group claimed the attacks.
The jihadist group had earlier released footage of the attackers from inside the building, also via Amaq - a rare claim of responsibility while an assault was still going on. "Our country is the safest place in the region", a middle-age man told state TV.
USA intelligence called the incident the worst domestic terror attack in Tehran since the 1980s, but an official said there had been signs IS was at least hoping to strike.
"The terrorists first went by auto to the mausoleum and after dropping two of them off, went to the city centre to attack parliament", the police said in a statement published on state media.
Mourners gathered outside the parliament complex Friday to watch the funeral procession. Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir, speaking in Germany, said he did not know who was responsible and that "we condemn terrorist attacks anywhere they occur", the New York Times reported.
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