Attack on Iran’s shrine kills at least one, injures several people

DUBAI (Reuters) -An attack on a Shi’ite Muslim shrine in Iran’s southern city of Shiraz killed at least one person on Sunday, a local official told state TV, adding that one person had been arrested.

Iranian state media earlier reported that at least four people had been killed in the attack.

“It happened around 19:00 local time (15:30 GMT) … an armed terrorist entered the Shrine area and started shooting … he was arrested,” said Mohammad Hadi Imaniyeh, the governor of Fars province.

“One person was killed in the attack.”

At least seven people were wounded, including two workers at the shrine and two pilgrims, and shops in the area had been closed. State TV said the shrine area had been cordoned off by security forces.

No group immediately claimed responsibility for the attack on the Shah Cheragh shrine, which state news agency IRNA said had been carried out by terrorists. Islamic State last October said it had launched an attack on the shrine in which 15 people were killed.

Islamic state has claimed previous attacks in Iran, including the deadly twin bombings in 2017 that targeted Iran’s parliament and the tomb of the Islamic Republic’s founder, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini.

Videos on Iranian state media showed panicked worshippers running to find their relatives and bloodied clothes left in the aftermath of the attack.