At least three people have been killed following a suicide car bombing attack near a police post in Iran’s southern port city of Chabahar, state television Press TV reported, quoting security and local officials.
Press TV quoted Rahmdel Bamari, governor of Sistan and Balochestan province, as saying that an “explosive-laden vehicle” targeted the police post on Thursday.
“The attacker set off the bomb as soon as he stopped outside Chabahar’s police headquarters,” Bamari said.
Reports say at least 19 people were also hurt, but Al Jazeera could not immediately verify the number of injuries.
Images posted online showed thick smoke rising from the sky in the area where the incident took place.
فيلمي از لحظات پس از انفجار خودرو بمب گذاری شده در #چابهار pic.twitter.com/DPopAQ5upN
— پايگاه خبری انتخاب (@Entekhab_News) December 6, 2018
There was no immediate claim of responsiblity for the attack.
The southeastern port city in Iran’s Sistan and Balochestan province is located near the border with Pakistan.
It hosts the operation of a joint port project between Iran and India.
Chabahar Port, which is being developed with funding from India, has been described as India’s “golden gateway” that will help boost trade links to land-locked Afghanistan and central Asia, while bypassing its regional rival, Pakistan.
In December 2010, at least 41 people were killed and 90 others were wounded following a suicide attack near a mosque in the city.
That attack was claimed by a Sunni Muslim group called, Jundallah, also known as Soldiers of God.
While rare, Iran has been targeted by armed groups in recent years.
In September, gunmen disguised as soldiers opened fire on a military parade in Ahvaz, killing and wounding dozens. Arab separatist groups and the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) group both claimed the assault.
Another coordinated assault by ISIL fighters on June 7, 2017 targeted the parliament in Tehran and the shrine of Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, the leader of Iran’s 1979 Islamic Revolution, killing at least 18 people and wounded more than 50.
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