Iran: Tehran Denies Report of Assassination Attempt on Ahmadinejad

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IRAN: TEHRAN DENIES REPORT OF ASSASSINATION ATTEMPT ON AHMADINEJAD


Tehran, 19 Dec. (AKI) - Tehran has denied reports of an attempt to assassinate the Iranian president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad while he was on a visit to the Baluchistan province. However, officials have confirmed that his driver and one of his bodyguards were killed in an attack carried out by a group of "bandits" on the motorcade of the president's security team.

"During the attack, a local driver and a revolutionary guard were killed," said government spokesperson Gholamhossein Elham at a news conference. "The police immediately intervened, a bandit was killed and another one arrested. The attack demonstrates how insecure this region is for everyone, Sunnis, Shiites, Baluchs and non-Baluchs," he said.

According to the Israeli intelligence website, the Debka File, Ahmadinejad's convoy was attacked on Thursday by armed men while he was in Zahedan, the capital of Baluchistan, a region with a majority Sunni population which wants more autonomy from Tehran.