The Police Commander for Sistan and Baluchestan province, Brigadier General Ahmed Taheri, announced Thursday the martyrdom of the imam of the Molaye Motaghian mosque, Sajjad Shahraki, in Zahedan, after he was shot by gunmen in front of the mosque.

Taheri confirmed that a "special criminal team has been assembled to identify and arrest criminals."

Tasnim news agency reported that "a member of the Basij was martyred, and several policemen were injured during riots in the city of Karaj, west Tehran."

Western/Saudi backed thugs & rioters in Karaj city attacked police officers, basij members & a cleric. They mauld them like wild animals. A young basiji was murdered & 2 police officers will probably not survive.

The more these monsters kill, the more they expose their evilness. pic.twitter.com/BcHMs7iq9N

— Seyed Mohammad Marandi (@s_m_marandi) November 3, 2022

The agency stated that "unidentified persons stabbed the martyr," noting that "2 of the injured policemen are in critical condition."

Read next: Iranian human rights body criticizes West for silence on Shiraz attack

On October 27, the political and security assistant to the governor of Mazandaran province reported the martyrdom of 2 members of the Basij in a terrorist attack in Amol, northern Iran. 

In this context, Iranian President Ibrahim Raisi stressed Wednesday that "the attempt to destabilize Iran is a manifestation of the enemy's anger and despair," noting that "the parties that caused the Syrian crisis in Damascus will not be able to succeed in Tehran."

A few days ago, Raisi said that "the riots in the country are preparing the ground for terrorist attacks, such as the one that targeted the Shah-e-Cheragh religious shrine in Shiraz," stressing that "the enemy's intention is to impede the country's progress." 

For his part, Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian stressed that his country "will not allow Iran's national security and interests to become a puppet of terrorists," noting that "there is reliable information that the enemies planned a multi-stage project to destabilize Iran's security."

Read next: West uses democracy as excuse to ignite riots in Iran: Kanaani