Respected by many Iranians, Soleimani oversaw Iranian military operations throughout the Middle East and millions attended his funeral in 2020.
Current Quds Force commander Ismail Qaani suggested that the Kerman crowd was “attacked by bloodthirsty people supplied by the United States and the Zionist regime”.
He pointed to two recent assassinations that were widely blamed on Israel – the attack on Hamas deputy leader Saleh al-Arouri in Beirut, and the killing of senior Guard commander Razi Mousavi near Damascus in December.
Qani said, “The killing of people like Aruri and Razi Mousavi and the crimes in Kerman show how desperate the enemy is.”
Iran regularly accuses its arch enemies Israel and the United States of fomenting the unrest, and authorities last month executed five people convicted of collaborating with Israel.
In July, Iran’s intelligence ministry said it had dismantled a network “linked to Israel’s spy organization”, which it said was plotting “terrorist operations” across Iran.
In September, Fars news agency reported that a key IS-affiliated “operative” had been arrested in Kerman, accused of carrying out “terrorist operations”.