International Community Bound to Fight Terrorism

Iran's UN envoy said the recent terrorist attack by the self-styled Islamic State militant group in Iraq that claimed the lives of a large number of Iranian pilgrims is a reminder of the international community's heavy responsibility toward battling terrorism.

Gholamhossein Dehqani made the statement in a Saturday letter to the UN Security Council and UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, calling for the condemnation of the deadly attack, Press TV reported.

"This terrorist attack, claimed by the Daesh [IS] group, is not the first example of such terrorist crimes against Iranian pilgrims as these pilgrims have been the targets of vicious terrorist attacks many times before," he said. Dehqani stressed that the people and government of Iran will spare no effort to destroy IS and other terrorist groups.

About 100 people, most of them Shia Iranian pilgrims, were killed after explosives placed in a truck were set off at a gas station in the Shomali Village in the suburbs of Hilla, 100 kilometers south of Baghdad, on Thursday.

The pilgrims were en route back to Iran from the holy city of Karbala, where they had attended mourning ceremonies to commemorate Arbaeen, the 40th day after the martyrdom anniversary of Imam Hussein (PBUH), the grandson of Prophet Muhammad (PBUH).

IS claimed the attack in an online statement.

"These crimes are in fact a warning to those who have spread the takfiri ideology and who aid terrorist organizations and are a wakeup call to these countries to stop their support of these killers and join the international community in their fight against extremism," said Dehqani.

Earlier, Leader of Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei offered his condolences over the large number of deaths in the attack.

The Leader said the criminal and atrocious takfiri groups carried out a "heinous and cowardly" measure to take revenge after their ominous plots were thwarted and their evil face was once again exposed.

Takfiris are hardliners that accuse Muslims that do not follow their extreme interpretation of Islam of apostasy punishable by death.