TEHRAN, Iran — A gunman opened fire Sunday night, Aug. 13, 2023, at a prominent shrine in southern Iran, killing one person and wounding eight others.
Officials offered no immediate motive for the attack in the city of Shiraz at Shah Cheragh, which draws Shiite pilgrims to its domed mosque and the tomb of a prominent member of the faith from its earliest days.
However, Iran has faced attacks in the past from the Sunni extremists of the Islamic State group, who view Shiites as heretics. Iran also faces lingering unrest and economic turmoil amid tensions with the West.
Iran’s state-run Islamic Republic News Agency quoted Ismail Qezelsofla, a deputy governor for security in the country’s Fars province, as offering the casualty toll.
Fars province Gov. Mohammad Hadi Imanieh told Iranian state television that a single gunman carried out the attack and later was detained by security forces. He did not offer any motive for the attack in his brief comments.
Footage after the attack showed security forces surround one entrance to the then-deserted courtyard of Shah Cheragh at sunset. Ambulances later took away the wounded as security forces and government officials reached the shrine.
Shah Cheragh is one of Iran’s top five Shiite shrines. It draws pilgrims to Shiraz, which is some 675 kilometers south of Iran’s capital, Tehran.
No group immediately claimed responsibility for the attack. / AP