Title: Biden Administration Privately Warned Iran of Looming Terrorist Threat Prior to Kerman Attacks
In a recent development, the Biden administration discreetly issued a private warning to Iran concerning a terrorist threat mere days before the devastating Jan. 3 attacks in the city of Kerman. Regrettably, the suicide bombings carried out by ISIS claimed the lives of over 80 people and left countless others injured.
According to sources, the warning was based on actionable intelligence and delivered to Iranian authorities a week prior to the solemn ceremony commemorating the first anniversary of Qassem Soleimani’s death. The U.S. government, upholding its long-standing “duty to warn” policy, strives to inform governments about potential lethal threats in aim to prevent innocent lives from being lost in such ghastly terror attacks.
It remains unclear, however, whether Iranian officials responded to the warning or took any action to thwart the attacks. Requests for comment regarding the warning have not yet received a response from the Iranian government. Remarkably, American officials refrained from divulging specific details pertaining to the nature and timing of the warning, the intelligence behind it, or Tehran’s potential response.
This private communication with Iran echoes similarly concealed messages sent by President Biden addressing attacks orchestrated by Houthi militias in Yemen. Notably, messages to Iran are often delivered through intermediary countries due to the lack of direct diplomatic contact between the U.S. and Iran.
The terror attacks in Kerman were claimed by ISIS, accentuating the group’s deep-seated enmity toward Shiite Muslims, while the majority of Iran’s population follows Shia Islam. The U.S. administration, considering Iran a leading source of instability in the region and the world’s foremost state sponsor of terrorism, maintains an adversarial stance towards the Iranian government.
Although the Biden administration did not explicitly confirm issuing the warning, officials emphasized the ongoing adversarial relationship with Iran. The National Counterterrorism Center has also identified an increased external threat from ISIS-K, an ISIS branch primarily focused in Afghanistan. This underscores the continuing menace posed by ISIS-K as a viable terrorist organization.
It is worth noting that the U.S. routinely dispatches warnings to foreign governments, even adversarial ones, when detailed intelligence on potential deadly acts is available. This is not the first time such a warning has been extended to Iran, highlighting the persistent efforts by the U.S. to promote security and stability in the face of global terrorism.
As the world grapples with ongoing threats from terrorist organizations, the Biden administration’s private warning to Iran serves as a reminder of the critical importance of international cooperation in combating extremism and safeguarding innocent lives.
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