Iran: Israel bombed its own embassies

The bomb attacks on Israeli embassy staff in India and Georgia were the work of Israel itself, an Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman said. In the incidents Monday in New Delhi and Tbilisi, bombers attached explosive devices to Israeli Embassy vehicles. In the Georgia incident, the device was discovered by the vehicle's driver and was later defused, but the one near the Israeli Embassy New Delhi detonated, wounding four people, officials said. Israel blamed both the incidents on Iran amid growing tensions over Iran's nuclear program. In Tehran, Foreign Ministry spokesman Ramin Mehmanparast rejected Israel's charge and said the claims by the "Zionist regime" about Iran's role is another phase of psychological war against Tehran, Iran's Islamic Republic News Agency reported. He said "the Zionist regime" had bombed its embassies in New Delhi and Tbilisi "to tarnish Iran's friendly ties with the host countries," IRNA said. "Tehran condemns terrorism in strongest term as Iran has been a victim of terrorism," Mehmanparast said. "The Zionist regime itself is based on state terrorism and occupation." Separately, IRNA quoted the Iranian Ambassador to India, Mehdi Nabizadeh, as denying Iran was involved in the New Delhi attack. CNN, quoting Indian police, said one of the wounded in the attack was Tal Yehoshua Coren, wife of an Israeli Defense Ministry employee. A Indian doctor was quoted as telling reporters she was in critical but stable condition in a hospital.