Iran condemns terrorist attacks in Somalia, Egypt

 TEHRAN (Tasnim) – Iran’s Foreign Ministry condemned recent deadly terrorist attacks in Somalia and Egypt, calling for concerted global efforts to uproot terrorism and extremism.

On Sunday, a bombing attack at the entrance of Somalia’s biggest port, in its capital city, Mogadishu, left 29 people dead, according to Somali police. Later in the day, the al-Shabab terrorist group claimed responsibility for the attack.

Also, a bombing at a chapel adjacent to Egypt’s main Coptic Christian cathedral killed 25 people and wounded another 49 during Sunday Mass, one of the deadliest attacks carried out against the religious minority. No group or individual has so far claimed responsibility for the deadly incident.

In two separate statements on Monday, Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesman Bahram Qassemi censured the terrorist attacks and offered his condolences to the Somali and Egyptian governments and nations, and extended his sympathy to the bereaved families of the victims.

A string of recent bomb attacks in different countries claimed by Takfiri groups is an indication of the terrorists’ frustration and desperation, he added, calling for a comprehensive and international confrontation with the phenomenon of terrorism.

Qassemi further said, “Targeting religious and holy places is incompatible with the principles of all religions”.

“The bloodthirsty and anarchistic terrorists, with this cowardly anti-Christian attack, which was launched just before the Christian New Year, once again showed that unbridled terrorism knows no borders, nationalities or faiths,” he said about the attack in Egypt.