Reports of an assassination attempt on the Iranian president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, were denied by the Tehran regime today, which said the confusion stemmed from a firecracker being mistakenly described as a "grenade".
The Iranian website khabaronline.ir said a homemade grenade exploded near Ahmadinejad's presidential motorcade in Hamedan, western Iran, as he was on his way to address a crowd.
But the official Islamic Republic News Agency (IRNA) reported that a local youth had thrown a firecracker as "a sign of joy" and blamed the use of the words "homemade grenade" for the confusion.
It quoted the governor of Hamedan saying: "No one has been injured and no damage has been made."
However, Mehr news agency said that a number of people had been arrested at the scene.
In Iran a homemade grenade often refers to a type of firecracker used to celebrate Chaharshanbe Suri, Iran's festival of fire, on the last Wednesday of the Persian year. The Iranian regime sees the celebration as un-Islamic and banned the sale of firecrackers in the country, resulting in many people making their own devices at home. The homemade grenades are not made to kill, although they are more dangerous than firecrackers and can cause death. Their use during a presidential visit would be highly unusual because of security concerns.
All the reports said that the president was unhurt and he went on to give his speech as planned, which was broadcast live on state television. He made no mention of the incident during his speech. The semi-official Fars News Agency initially said a "homemade grenade" was thrown but changed the report within a few minutes, referring to a "homemade firecracker" it said was thrown as a "sign of joy".
The report on khabaronline.ir said the president's car was about 100 metres from the apparent blast.
Heydar Moslehi, Iran's intelligence minster, was quoted by the Iranian Students News Agency (ISNA) after the incident saying: "We have discovered some conspiracy plots backed by Israelis in the region." However, his comments did not directly relate to events in Hamedan.
Reporting the president's speech, IRNA said he had expressed an interest "in dialogue [with the west] based on justice and mutual respect". He criticised the imposition of sanctions on Iran but said he was prepared to meet Barack Obama on the sidelines of the UN general assembly in September, according to the report.
Ahmadinejad has become a pariah figure in the west since rising to power in 2005. He has thrived on confrontation, with frequent fiery rhetoric aimed at Israel, the US and their allies. Of most concern to the west is Iran's nuclear programme, which the west believes is being used to develop weapons of mass destruction despite Iran's insistence that it is for peaceful ends. Israel is believed to be prepared to strike against Iran's nuclear facility if its fears about Iran developing nuclear weapons cannot be allayed. Ahmadinejad, who has denied the Holocaust in the past, claimed earlier this week that "Zionists" were threatening to kill him.