At least five senior commanders in Iran's elite Revolutionary Guards and more than 20 others were killed by a suicide bomber yesterday in the most serious attack against the Islamic regime in more than two decades.
The deputy commander of the Revolutionary Guards' ground forces Nourali Shoushtari was among those killed in an attack that highlights the pressures facing the regime at a critical time in its nuclear negotiations with the west.
The attack in the restive province of Sistan-Baluchestan will raise speculation that Iran's ethnic and religious minorities are seeking to exploit the political unrest stemming from June's disputed presidential election.