TEHRAN: Iranian President Hassan Rouhani vowed a "crushing" response after assailants sprayed a crowd with gunfire, shooting dead at least 29 people including women and children Saturday at a military parade near the Iraqi border.

The Islamic State (IS) group claimed responsibility for the rare assault in the southwestern city of Ahvaz, while Iranian officials blamed "a foreign regime" backed by the United States.

A local journalist who witnessed the attack said shots rang out for 10 to 15 minutes and that at least one of the assailants, armed with a Kalashnikov assault rifle, wore the uniform of Iran's Revolutionary Guards.

"We realised it was a terrorist attack as bodyguards (of officials) started shooting," Behrad Ghasemi told AFP. "Everything went haywire and soldiers started running."

"The terrorists had no particular target and didn't really seem to care as they shot anyone they could with rapid gunfire."

Ahvaz lies in Khuzestan, a province bordering Iraq that has a large ethnic Arab community and has seen separatist violence in the past that Iran has blamed on its regional rivals.

Iran summoned diplomats from Denmark, the Netherlands and Britain over their "hosting of some members of the terrorist group" which carried out the attack, state media said Sunday.

"It is not acceptable that the European Union does not blacklist members of these terrorist groups as long as they do not perpetrate a crime on... European soil," official news agency IRNA quoted foreign ministry spokesman Bahram Qasemi as saying.

After addressing a similar parade in Tehran to commemorate the start of the 1980-1988 war with Iraq, Rouhani warned that "the response of the Islamic Republic of Iran to the smallest threat will be crushing".

Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said the attack was carried out by "terrorists recruited, trained, armed & paid by a foreign regime".

"Iran holds regional terror sponsors and their US masters accountable for such attacks," he wrote on Twitter.

'Bloody crime'

 IS claimed the attack via its propaganda mouthpiece Amaq and, according to intelligence monitor SITE, said the attack was in response to Iranian involvement in conflicts across the region.

State television gave a toll of 29 dead and 57 wounded, while IRNA said those killed included women and children who were spectators at the parade.

Three attackers were killed at the scene and the fourth died later of his injuries, said armed forces spokesman Brigadier General Abolfazl Shekarchi.

The Revolutionary Guards accused Shiite-dominated Iran's Sunni arch-rival Saudi Arabia of funding the attackers, while Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei also blamed Iran's pro-US rivals.

Tehran-backed Lebanese Shiite movement Hezbollah condemned the "terrorist" attack, saying that "repulsive Satanic hands" were behind it.

"This operation was a continuation of the other forms of war the United States and its allies are waging, directly or indirectly," it said.

In a message to Russia's close regional ally, President Vladimir Putin said he was "appalled by this bloody crime", while Syria, another ally, neighbouring Turkey and France also expressed condolences.

Khuzestan was a major battleground of the 1980s war with Iraq and the province saw unrest in 2005 and 2011, but has since been largely quiet.

Kurdish rebels frequently attack military patrols on the border further north, but attacks on regime targets in major cities are rare.

On June 7, 2017 in Tehran, 17 people were killed and dozens wounded in simultaneous attacks on the parliament and on the tomb of revolutionary leader Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini -- the first inside Iran claimed by IS.

In April, 26 alleged members of the Sunni extremist group went on trial in connection with the attacks.

Rouhani defiant

 The attack in Ahvaz came as Rouhani and other dignitaries attended the main anniversary parade in Tehran.

In a keynote speech, he vowed to boost Iran's ballistic missile capabilities, despite Western concerns that were cited by his US counterpart Donald Trump in May when he abandoned a landmark nuclear deal with Tehran.

"We will never decrease our defensive capabilities... we will increase them day by day," Rouhani said.

"The fact that the missiles anger (the West) shows they are our most effective weapons."

The United States reimposed crippling sanctions on Iran last month, and another round of even harsher sanctions targeting Iran's vital oil sector is set to go back into effect on November 5.

Washington has said it is ready to open talks on a new agreement to replace the July 2015 accord, but Tehran has repeatedly said it cannot negotiate under pressure from sanctions.

Rouhani leaves Sunday for New York to attend next week's United Nations General Assembly along with Trump, but Iran has repeatedly ruled out any meeting.</s>U.S President Donald Trump blasted Iran on Tuesday as a “corrupt dictatorship” that is plundering its people to pay for aggression abroad, using his speech to the United Nations General Assembly to threaten more sanctions against Tehran.

“Iran’s leaders sow chaos, death and destruction,” Trump told the annual gathering. “They do not respect their neighbors or borders or the sovereign rights of nations.”

Trump’s speech in the green-marbled U.N. hall, while relatively low key, was aimed squarely at Iran, which the United States accuses of harboring nuclear ambitions and fomenting instability in the Middle East through its support for militant groups in Syria, Lebanon and Yemen.

But much of his 35-minute address was a defense of his “America First” policies of putting U.S. interests ahead of any move toward globalism, a message that was greeted by silence in the hall.

Besides calling out Iran, Trump also criticized China for its trade practices but made no mention of Russia’s interference in Syria or meddling in U.S. elections.

Trump, who begins his political rallies with boasts about his economic record in less than two years in office, used the same rhetoric before the crowd of world leaders and diplomats, telling them he had accomplished more than almost any previous U.S. president.

The remark led to some murmuring and laughter in the crowd, taking the president slightly aback.

“I didn’t expect that reaction, but that’s okay,” he said.

Trump, who said in a Twitter post on Tuesday morning that he had given up hope for a meeting with Iranian President Hassan Rouhani while both were in New York, said he would keep up economic pressure on Tehran to try to force a change in its behavior.

In May, he withdrew the United States from the 2015 international deal to put curbs on Iran’s nuclear program in exchange for easing sanctions. Foes for decades, Washington and Tehran have been increasingly at odds since May. The accord with OPEC member Iran was negotiated under Democratic U.S. President Barack Obama.

“Additional sanctions will resume November 5th and more will follow and we are working with countries that import Iranian crude oil to cut their purchases substantially,” Trump said.

He said the United States would help create a regional strategic alliance between Gulf nations and Jordan and Egypt, an initiative that the United States sees as a bulwark against Iran.

Trump compared U.S. relations with Iran to what he called improved ties with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, who Trump had met in Singapore in June as part of a still-unfulfilled drive to get Pyongyang to give up its nuclear weapons.

In his address last year to the U.N., Trump insulted Kim as a “rocket man” bent on nuclear destruction. On Tuesday, Trump praised Kim for halting nuclear and missile tests, releasing Americans held prisoner and returning some remains of U.S. soldiers killed in the 1950s Korean War.

The two leaders are trying to arrange a second summit and are exchanging private correspondence. Trump has said sanctions on North Korea would remain for now.</s>President Donald Trump speaks during a signing ceremony for the United States-Korea Free Trade Agreement at the Lotte New York Palace hotel during the United Nations General Assembly, Monday, Sept. 24, 2018, in New York. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci) ORG XMIT: NYEV130

NEW YORK – President Donald Trump blamed Iranian leaders for sowing "chaos, death and destruction" in a steely speech to the United Nations General Assembly on Tuesday that heavily emphasized the president's support of national sovereignty over globalism.

Touting his meeting this year with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and blasting Iran for spreading mayhem in the Middle East, Trump offered an impassioned defense of a foreign policy doctrine he said would allow countries to reject "global governance."

"We reject the ideology of globalism, and we embrace the doctrine of patriotism," Trump said. "We will never surrender America’s sovereignty to an unelected, unaccountable, global bureaucracy."

Lobbying criticism at a bevy of international institutions, Trump called the U.N. human rights council "a grave embarrassment to this institution" and said the International Criminal Court "has no jurisdiction, no legitimacy and no authority." He touted some of his most divisive foreign policy decisions, including his crackdown on immigration and his recognition of Jerusalem as the capital of Israel.

The "America first" remarks drew on a similar speech he delivered at the United Nations last year but included more detailed examples of how that vision informs his policies on trade, immigration and the world's hot spots.

Though Trump reserved his harshest language for Iran, he did not shy away from condemning other countries by name. He jabbed China for what he said were unfair trade policies. And he announced sanctions against Venezuelan leaders and blasted the government of its president, Nicolas Maduro, saying his socialist policies have "bankrupted the oil-rich nation and driven its people into abject poverty."

Trump suggested he would sharply curtail U.S. foreign aid, saying he ordered a review by Secretary of State Mike Pompeo of whether countries that receive American assistance are allies with shared values.

"We are only going to give foreign aid to those who respect us and, frankly, are our friends," Trump said. "And we expect other countries to pay their fair share for the cost of their defense."

In an awkward moment, minutes into his speech, the delegates in the chamber laughed at a regular talking point from the president. Trump said his administration had accomplished more than any other in U.S. history, prompting the reaction from the General Assembly hall.

More: Trump's boast at the United Nations prompts laughter from world leaders and ridicule on Twitter

“So true,” Trump said. “I didn’t expect that reaction, but that’s OK.”

Trump’s boast drew ridicule from his critics on Twitter. “Preposterous,” tweeted Nicholas Burns, a longtime diplomat who served in the Obama and Clinton administrations.

Trump's remarks were buffeted by warnings from other world leaders that America's pullback from the international institutions was ill-conceived and even dangerous.

French President Emmanuel Macron delivered a passionate defense of multilateralism, saying it was the only way to stave off instability and conflict across the globe. He rebuked Trump’s message, suggesting that “brandishing sovereignty” was a way of attacking others.

In the absence of a strong American commitment to preserving the international order, Macron suggested, France and other European countries could step into the void, leading the charge against urgent global threats, such as climate change, poverty and inequality.

“Do not accept the erosion of multilateralism. Don’t accept our history unraveling," Macron said to a receptive audience.

Macron focused on climate change as an issue that demanded “global mobilization” from other developed countries after Trump’s decision to withdraw from the Paris climate agreement, which aims to curb global warming by gradually reducing global emissions of greenhouse gases.

“The Paris agreement has stayed intact, and that is because we have decided to stay unified in spite of the U.S. decision to withdraw. This is power,” Macron said. “Let’s stop signing trade agreements with those who don’t comply with the Paris agreement,” he added, outlining a strategy that would isolate the United States.

Macron had company in offering a sharp contrast to Trump's address. Speaking before Trump arrived at the podium, U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres lamented the rise of populism and a fraying of international cooperation – trends the U.S. president has fueled.

“Multilateralism is under fire precisely when we need it most,” Guterres declared.

“Trust in global governance is also fragile, as 21st-century challenges outpace 20th-century institutions and mindsets,” Guterres said. “Among countries, cooperation is less certain and more difficult. Divisions in our Security Council are stark.”

Guterres said the world risks consequences if leaders do not act quickly on the problem of climate change.

"There is no way forward but collective, common-sense action for the common good," he said.

More: Trump: 'No plans' to meet with Iran's Hassan Rouhani at United Nations

More: Trump: 2nd summit with N. Korean leader Kim Jong Un to happen soon

Trump wants allies at the United Nations to isolate Iran rather than try to salvage the 2015 nuclear agreement. The president described the nuclear deal as a "windfall" for Iranian leaders, accusing them of using eased sanctions in the agreement to fund terrorism.

"We cannot allow the world’s leading sponsor of terrorism to possess the planet’s most dangerous weapons," Trump said. "We cannot allow a regime that chants, 'Death to America' and that threatens Israel with annihilation to possess the means to deliver a nuclear warhead to any city on Earth. Just can't do it."</s>In this Saturday, Sept. 22, 2018, file photo, European Union foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini speaks at a news conference during a meeting of Women Foreign Ministers in Montreal. Five world powers and Iran agreed late Monday, Sept. 24, 2018, to establish a financial facility in the European Union to facilitate payments for Iranian imports and exports including oil, a key move sought by Tehran following the U.S. pullout from the 2015 nuclear deal and its re-imposition of sanctions. Mogherini told reporters after the closed-door ministerial meeting that the financial facility is also aimed at preserving the nuclear agreement. (Graham Hughes/The Canadian Press via AP)

In this Saturday, Sept. 22, 2018, file photo, European Union foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini speaks at a news conference during a meeting of Women Foreign Ministers in Montreal. Five world powers and Iran agreed late Monday, Sept. 24, 2018, to establish a financial facility in the European Union to facilitate payments for Iranian imports and exports including oil, a key move sought by Tehran following the U.S. pullout from the 2015 nuclear deal and its re-imposition of sanctions. Mogherini told reporters after the closed-door ministerial meeting that the financial facility is also aimed at preserving the nuclear agreement. (Graham Hughes/The Canadian Press via AP)

UNITED NATIONS (AP) — Five world powers and Iran agreed late Monday to establish a financial facility in the European Union to facilitate payments for Iranian imports and exports including oil, a key move sought by Tehran following the U.S. pullout from the 2015 nuclear deal and its re-imposition of sanctions.

Foreign ministers from Britain, France, Germany, Russia, China and Iran said in a joint statement that the so-called “Special Purpose Vehicle” will “assist and reassure economic operators pursuing legitimate business with Iran.”

The nuclear agreement is meant to prevent Tehran from developing nuclear weapons, but U.S. President Donald Trump announced in May he was unilaterally pulling out because he felt it wasn’t strong enough and didn’t cover other issues of concern to the U.S. and its allies, such as Iran’s military influence in the Middle East and ballistic missile program. The U.S. has also accused Iran of promoting international terrorism, which Tehran vehemently denies.

Iran’s economy is already suffering from the sanctions that Washington re-imposed after walking away from the nuclear agreement, and the U.S. has threatened to punish companies from other nations that continue doing business with Iran.

In sharp contrast, the five other world powers who signed the nuclear deal remain strongly committed to it, and the new financial facility is almost certain to anger the Trump administration.

European Union foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini told reporters after the closed-door ministerial meeting that the financial facility is also aimed at preserving the nuclear agreement. The EU and Iran say the deal is working, and the joint statement notes that the International Atomic Energy Agency has now certified 12 times that Iran is in compliance with its obligations.

“In practical terms,” Mogherini said, “this will mean that EU member states will set up a legal entity to facilitate legitimate financial transactions with Iran and this will allow European companies to continue to trade with Iran in accordance with European Union law and could be open to other partners in the world. ”

She said the agreement follows extensive exchanges and announced that a meeting of technical experts will be held to “operationalize” the new financial facility.

The joint statement said the six countries that signed the 2015 nuclear agreement “reconfirmed their commitment to its full and effective implementation in good faith and in a constructive atmosphere.” They called the agreement “a key element of the global non-proliferation architecture and a significant achievement of multilateral diplomacy.”

The participants reaffirmed their joint statement on July 6, “in particular to pursue concrete and effective measures to secure payment channels with Iran.”</s>When President Trump delivers his speech to the United Nations General Assembly on Tuesday, one phrase is unlikely to show up: "rocket man."

A lot has changed since Trump used that derisive nickname for North Korean leader Kim Jong Un during his address at the U.N. last year — remarks where he also said the United States would "totally destroy" North Korea if necessary.

Since those comments, tensions have eased between Trump and Kim, with the leaders now exchanging compliments after holding a historic face-to-face summit in June.

"Everybody interpreted his comments [last year] as the prelude to war. You could not have a more stark difference in tone," said Brett Schaefer of the Heritage Foundation, a conservative think tank.

Part of Trump's mission at the U.N. this year will be promoting his warmer ties with North Korea as a foreign policy success, while also calling on nations to keep up pressure on Pyongyang through sanctions.

Although temperatures have cooled, there is still a question of how far North Korea is willing to go on denuclearization. Trump canceled Secretary of State Mike Pompeo's planned visit to North Korea in August, citing a "lack of progress" in dismantling the country's nuclear program.

U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Nikki Haley called out Russia earlier this month for allegedly helping North Korea skirt the international sanctions, a charge that Russia denied. Trump has also argued on multiple occasions that China is easing up on its enforcement of sanctions, as a form of retribution against the United States over trade disputes.

Trump told reporters at the U.N. on Monday that he hoped to have another meeting with North Korea's Kim soon.

In a separate briefing on Monday, Pompeo said that he expects to travel to Pyongyang before the end of the year to help make arrangements for that meeting.

Pompeo said sanctions against North Korea will continue.

"The president remains resolute, now is not the time to ease pressure," he said.

While Trump may hold off on any harsh words against North Korea, he will use his time at the General Assembly to push back against another potential nuclear threat: Iran.

"You can bet the president will have well deserved strong words for the Iranian regime, which is among the worse violators of U.N. Security Council resolutions, if not the absolute worst in the world," Pompeo said.

He said Trump will call on all countries to join the U.S. in its efforts to isolate Iran.

When Trump spoke at the U.N. last year, the United States was still in the Iran nuclear deal negotiated by the Obama administration. Trump called the deal an "embarrassment."

Trump pulled out of the agreement in May over the objections of European allies. Since then he has ratcheted up the rhetoric and reimposed sanctions against Iran.

In July, Trump tweeted a warning at Iranian President Hassan Rouhani. He said Iran would "suffer" like few other countries before if it continued to threaten the U.S.

The Trump administration has made clear that it will pressure Iran to prevent further development of its nuclear program, to stop its ballistic missile production and to end its support for malign activity in the Middle East.

"That is going to be a very strong message and perhaps the predominant message that nations will take away from the General Assembly speech," Schaefer said.

Rouhani is also scheduled to deliver a speech at the U.N. later on Tuesday, where he will have the opportunity to rebut Trump's remarks.

All of this could set the stage for a tense meeting of the U.N. Security Council meeting on Wednesday.

Trump will chair the meeting, which was initially supposed to be focused on Iran. The administration broadened the focus to denuclearization in general, but in a tweet about the meeting Friday, Trump only mentioned Iran.

It is unclear whether Rouhani will choose to attend the session, but it is possible.

The focus on Iran also puts the United States at odds with Security Council members France and the United Kingdom. Both countries lobbied unsuccessfully to keep the U.S. in the nuclear deal.

"If Trump makes Iran the centerpiece of his remarks, the Europeans will have to respond," said Ilan Goldenberg, a senior fellow at the Center for a New American Security.

"They will be as polite as possible and avoid trying to agitate him ... but they will say they disagree" with Trump about the Iran deal.

It would not be the first time that Trump has clashed with U.S. allies this year. Trump was isolated and combative at the G-7 meeting in Canada in June and at the NATO meeting in Brussels in July.

Trump has not been as harsh in his rhetoric about the U.N., but he has raised some concerns about the international body.

"I've always said the United Nations has tremendous potential, but it has not lived up to that potential," Trump said in a video previewing his trip.

The broad range of countries that attend the General Assembly may give Trump the chance to direct his ire mostly toward adversaries.

"It's particularly bad when the U.S. looks isolated among its allies," Goldenberg said. "Trump having a feud with the Iranians is better than Trump having a feud with the French. He has enough bad guys to go after, maybe he won't go after our friends."</s>When President Trump delivers his speech to the United Nations General Assembly on Tuesday, one phrase is unlikely to show up: "rocket man."

A lot has changed since Trump used that derisive nickname for North Korean leader Kim Jong Un during his address at the U.N. last year — remarks where he also said the United States would "totally destroy" North Korea if necessary.

Since those comments, tensions have eased between Trump and Kim, with the leaders now exchanging compliments after holding a historic face-to-face summit in June.

"Everybody interpreted his comments [last year] as the prelude to war. You could not have a more stark difference in tone," said Brett Schaefer of the Heritage Foundation, a conservative think tank.

Part of Trump's mission at the U.N. this year will be promoting his warmer ties with North Korea as a foreign policy success, while also calling on nations to keep up pressure on Pyongyang through sanctions.

Although temperatures have cooled, there is still a question of how far North Korea is willing to go on denuclearization. Trump canceled Secretary of State Mike Pompeo's planned visit to North Korea in August, citing a "lack of progress" in dismantling the country's nuclear program.

U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Nikki Haley called out Russia earlier this month for allegedly helping North Korea skirt the international sanctions, a charge that Russia denied. Trump has also argued on multiple occasions that China is easing up on its enforcement of sanctions, as a form of retribution against the United States over trade disputes.

Trump told reporters at the U.N. on Monday that he hoped to have another meeting with North Korea's Kim soon.

In a separate briefing on Monday, Pompeo said that he expects to travel to Pyongyang before the end of the year to help make arrangements for that meeting.

Pompeo said sanctions against North Korea will continue.

"The president remains resolute, now is not the time to ease pressure," he said.

While Trump may hold off on any harsh words against North Korea, he will use his time at the General Assembly to push back against another potential nuclear threat: Iran.

"You can bet the president will have well deserved strong words for the Iranian regime, which is among the worse violators of U.N. Security Council resolutions, if not the absolute worst in the world," Pompeo said.

He said Trump will call on all countries to join the U.S. in its efforts to isolate Iran.

When Trump spoke at the U.N. last year, the United States was still in the Iran nuclear deal negotiated by the Obama administration. Trump called the deal an "embarrassment."

Trump pulled out of the agreement in May over the objections of European allies. Since then he has ratcheted up the rhetoric and reimposed sanctions against Iran.

In July, Trump tweeted a warning at Iranian President Hassan Rouhani. He said Iran would "suffer" like few other countries before if it continued to threaten the U.S.

The Trump administration has made clear that it will pressure Iran to prevent further development of its nuclear program, to stop its ballistic missile production and to end its support for malign activity in the Middle East.

"That is going to be a very strong message and perhaps the predominant message that nations will take away from the General Assembly speech," Schaefer said.

Rouhani is also scheduled to deliver a speech at the U.N. later on Tuesday, where he will have the opportunity to rebut Trump's remarks.

All of this could set the stage for a tense meeting of the U.N. Security Council meeting on Wednesday.

Trump will chair the meeting, which was initially supposed to be focused on Iran. The administration broadened the focus to denuclearization in general, but in a tweet about the meeting Friday, Trump only mentioned Iran.

It is unclear whether Rouhani will choose to attend the session, but it is possible.

The focus on Iran also puts the United States at odds with Security Council members France and the United Kingdom. Both countries lobbied unsuccessfully to keep the U.S. in the nuclear deal.

"If Trump makes Iran the centerpiece of his remarks, the Europeans will have to respond," said Ilan Goldenberg, a senior fellow at the Center for a New American Security.

"They will be as polite as possible and avoid trying to agitate him ... but they will say they disagree" with Trump about the Iran deal.

It would not be the first time that Trump has clashed with U.S. allies this year. Trump was isolated and combative at the G-7 meeting in Canada in June and at the NATO meeting in Brussels in July.

Trump has not been as harsh in his rhetoric about the U.N., but he has raised some concerns about the international body.

"I've always said the United Nations has tremendous potential, but it has not lived up to that potential," Trump said in a video previewing his trip.

The broad range of countries that attend the General Assembly may give Trump the chance to direct his ire mostly toward adversaries.

"It's particularly bad when the U.S. looks isolated among its allies," Goldenberg said. "Trump having a feud with the Iranians is better than Trump having a feud with the French. He has enough bad guys to go after, maybe he won't go after our friends."</s>TEHERAN (AFP) - Iranian President Hassan Rouhani vowed a "crushing" response after assailants sprayed a crowd with gunfire, shooting dead at least 29 people including women and children on Saturday (Sept 22) at a military parade near the Iraqi border.

The Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) group claimed responsibility for the rare assault in the south-western city of Ahvaz, while Iranian officials blamed "a foreign regime" backed by the United States.

A local journalist who witnessed the attack said shots rang out for 10 to 15 minutes and that at least one of the assailants, armed with a Kalashnikov assault rifle, wore the uniform of Iran's Revolutionary Guards.

"We realised it was a terrorist attack, as bodyguards (of officials) started shooting," Mr Behrad Ghasemi told AFP.

"Everything went haywire and soldiers started running."

"The terrorists had no particular target and didn't really seem to care, as they shot anyone they could with rapid gunfire."

Ahvaz lies in Khuzestan, a province bordering Iraq that has a large ethnic Arab community and has seen separatist violence in the past that Iran has blamed on its regional rivals.

Iran summoned diplomats from Denmark, the Netherlands and Britain over their "hosting of some members of the terrorist group" which carried out the attack, state media said on Sunday.

"It is not acceptable that the European Union does not blacklist members of these terrorist groups as long as they do not perpetrate a crime on... European soil," official news agency IRNA quoted foreign ministry spokesman Bahram Qasemi as saying.

After addressing a similar parade in Teheran to commemorate the start of the 1980-1988 war with Iraq, Mr Rouhani warned that "the response of the Islamic Republic of Iran to the smallest threat will be crushing".

Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said the attack was carried out by "terrorists recruited, trained, armed & paid by a foreign regime".

"Iran holds regional terror sponsors and their US masters accountable for such attacks," he wrote on Twitter.

ISIS claimed the attack via its propaganda mouthpiece Amaq news agency and, according to intelligence monitor SITE, said the attack was in response to Iranian involvement in conflicts across the region.

State television gave a toll of 29 dead and 57 wounded, while IRNA said those killed included women and children who were spectators at the parade.

Three attackers were killed at the scene and the fourth died later of his injuries, said armed forces spokesman Brigadier General Abolfazl Shekarchi.

The Revolutionary Guards accused Shi'ite-dominated Iran's Sunni arch-rival Saudi Arabia of funding the attackers, while Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei also blamed Iran's pro-US rivals.

Teheran-backed Lebanese Shi'ite movement Hizbollah condemned the "terrorist" attack, saying that "repulsive Satanic hands" were behind it.

"This operation was a continuation of the other forms of war the United States and its allies are waging, directly or indirectly," it said.

In a message to Russia's close regional ally, President Vladimir Putin said he was "appalled by this bloody crime", while Syria, another ally, neighbouring Turkey and France also expressed condolences.

Khuzestan was a major battleground of the 1980s war with Iraq and the province saw unrest in 2005 and 2011, but has since been largely quiet.

Kurdish rebels frequently attack military patrols on the border further north, but attacks on regime targets in major cities are rare.

On June 7, 2017, in Teheran, 17 people were killed and dozens wounded in simultaneous attacks on the Parliament and on the tomb of revolutionary leader Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini - the first inside Iran claimed by ISIS.

In April, 26 alleged members of the Sunni extremist group went on trial in connection with the attacks.

The attack in Ahvaz came as Mr Rouhani and other dignitaries attended the main anniversary parade in Teheran.

In a keynote speech, he vowed to boost Iran's ballistic missile capabilities, despite Western concerns that were cited by his US counterpart Donald Trump in May when he abandoned a landmark nuclear deal with Teheran.

"We will never decrease our defensive capabilities... We will increase them day by day," Mr Rouhani said.

"The fact that the missiles anger (the West) shows they are our most effective weapons."

The US reimposed crippling sanctions on Iran last month, and another round of even harsher sanctions targeting Iran's vital oil sector is set to go back into effect on Nov 5.

Washington has said it is ready to open talks on a new agreement to replace the July 2015 accord, but Teheran has repeatedly said it cannot negotiate under pressure from sanctions.

Mr Rouhani leaves for New York on Sunday to attend this week's United Nations General Assembly along with Mr Trump, but Iran has repeatedly ruled out any meeting.</s>When President Trump delivers his speech to the United Nations General Assembly on Tuesday, one phrase is unlikely to show up: "rocket man."

A lot has changed since Trump used that derisive nickname for North Korean leader Kim Jong Un during his address at the U.N. last year — remarks where he also said the United States would "totally destroy" North Korea if necessary.

Since those comments, tensions have eased between Trump and Kim, with the leaders now exchanging compliments after holding a historic face-to-face summit in June.

"Everybody interpreted his comments [last year] as the prelude to war. You could not have a more stark difference in tone," said Brett Schaefer of the Heritage Foundation, a conservative think tank.

Part of Trump's mission at the U.N. this year will be promoting his warmer ties with North Korea as a foreign policy success, while also calling on nations to keep up pressure on Pyongyang through sanctions.

Although temperatures have cooled, there is still a question of how far North Korea is willing to go on denuclearization. Trump canceled Secretary of State Mike Pompeo's planned visit to North Korea in August, citing a "lack of progress" in dismantling the country's nuclear program.

U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Nikki Haley called out Russia earlier this month for allegedly helping North Korea skirt the international sanctions, a charge that Russia denied. Trump has also argued on multiple occasions that China is easing up on its enforcement of sanctions, as a form of retribution against the United States over trade disputes.

Trump told reporters at the U.N. on Monday that he hoped to have another meeting with North Korea's Kim soon.

In a separate briefing on Monday, Pompeo said that he expects to travel to Pyongyang before the end of the year to help make arrangements for that meeting.

Pompeo said sanctions against North Korea will continue.

"The president remains resolute, now is not the time to ease pressure," he said.

While Trump may hold off on any harsh words against North Korea, he will use his time at the General Assembly to push back against another potential nuclear threat: Iran.

"You can bet the president will have well deserved strong words for the Iranian regime, which is among the worse violators of U.N. Security Council resolutions, if not the absolute worst in the world," Pompeo said.

He said Trump will call on all countries to join the U.S. in its efforts to isolate Iran.

When Trump spoke at the U.N. last year, the United States was still in the Iran nuclear deal negotiated by the Obama administration. Trump called the deal an "embarrassment."

Trump pulled out of the agreement in May over the objections of European allies. Since then he has ratcheted up the rhetoric and reimposed sanctions against Iran.

In July, Trump tweeted a warning at Iranian President Hassan Rouhani. He said Iran would "suffer" like few other countries before if it continued to threaten the U.S.

The Trump administration has made clear that it will pressure Iran to prevent further development of its nuclear program, to stop its ballistic missile production and to end its support for malign activity in the Middle East.

"That is going to be a very strong message and perhaps the predominant message that nations will take away from the General Assembly speech," Schaefer said.

Rouhani is also scheduled to deliver a speech at the U.N. later on Tuesday, where he will have the opportunity to rebut Trump's remarks.

All of this could set the stage for a tense meeting of the U.N. Security Council meeting on Wednesday.

Trump will chair the meeting, which was initially supposed to be focused on Iran. The administration broadened the focus to denuclearization in general, but in a tweet about the meeting Friday, Trump only mentioned Iran.

It is unclear whether Rouhani will choose to attend the session, but it is possible.

The focus on Iran also puts the United States at odds with Security Council members France and the United Kingdom. Both countries lobbied unsuccessfully to keep the U.S. in the nuclear deal.

"If Trump makes Iran the centerpiece of his remarks, the Europeans will have to respond," said Ilan Goldenberg, a senior fellow at the Center for a New American Security.

"They will be as polite as possible and avoid trying to agitate him ... but they will say they disagree" with Trump about the Iran deal.

It would not be the first time that Trump has clashed with U.S. allies this year. Trump was isolated and combative at the G-7 meeting in Canada in June and at the NATO meeting in Brussels in July.

Trump has not been as harsh in his rhetoric about the U.N., but he has raised some concerns about the international body.

"I've always said the United Nations has tremendous potential, but it has not lived up to that potential," Trump said in a video previewing his trip.

The broad range of countries that attend the General Assembly may give Trump the chance to direct his ire mostly toward adversaries.

"It's particularly bad when the U.S. looks isolated among its allies," Goldenberg said. "Trump having a feud with the Iranians is better than Trump having a feud with the French. He has enough bad guys to go after, maybe he won't go after our friends."</s>US president Donald Trump has urged the international community to join the US in isolating Iran as he delivered a combative speech to the United Nations.

In a keynote address to the United Nations General Assembly in New York, Mr Trump began by focusing on his own political achievements, claiming that his administration had accomplished “almost more than any other administration in the history of our country”. His statement elicited laughter from the packed chamber, prompting Mr Trump to say “didn’t expect that reaction”.

While last year Mr Trump denounced North Korean leader Kim Jong-un as “little Rocket Man” this year he thanked Mr Kim for his “courage”, highlighting the dialogue between the US and North Korea under his presidency.

Instead Mr Trump turned his ire to Iran. Months after the US pulled out of the 2015 nuclear deal, Mr Trump denounced the Iranian regime as the “leading sponsor of terrorism”.

“We cannot allow the world’s leading sponsor of terrorism to possess the world’s most dangerous weapons,” he said.

Noting that Iran’s neighbours have “played a heavy toll” for the regime’s “agenda of aggression and expansion”, he said that the nuclear deal was a “windfall for Iran’s leaders”. He said that in the years since the deal was reached, Iran’s military budget grew by nearly 40 per cent, it had developed nuclear capable missiles, increased its policy of internal repressions and funded terrorism.

In a wide-ranging speech, Mr Trump hit on many of the protectionist themes that helped propel him to the White House. Denouncing countries for taking advantage of America’s economy, he said that his administration had already started to renegotiate “broken and bad trade deals”. America would “not be taken advantage of any longer,” he said.

“We reject the ideology of globalism, and we embrace the doctrine of patriotism.”

He highlighted America’s energy independence, praising Poland for weaning itself off dependence on Russia for energy, and singling out Germany for criticism over its use of Russian energy.

Similarly, he said that the US would not be joining the new global compact on migration.

“Migration should not be governed by an international body, unaccountable by our own citizens.” He said the long-term solution for migration is “to help people to build more hopeful futures in their home countries – to ‘make their countries great again’”.

He also hinted that the US would trim its foreign aid budget, noting that it is the largest aid donor in the world.

On the Middle East, Mr Trump praised his administration’s decision to move the US embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem.

Underlining what he described as the American policy of “principled realism” he said that the US recognised the right of “every sovereign state to determine its own capital”.

However, it is his words on Iran that could have the most significant impact in the near-term. The other signatories to the Iran deal – including France, the UK and Germany – remain committed to the landmark agreement which led to a curtailment of Iran’s nuclear activity in exchange for the lifting of punishing economic sanctions.

Iran’s president Hassan Rouhani is due to address the general assembly later on Tuesday.

Speaking minutes before he entered the chamber, Mr Trump said he did not plan on meeting Mr Rouhani at the UN. But he left the door open to a future meeting.

“Iran has to change its tune before I meet with them. They want to meet. I’m not meeting with them until they change their tune. It will happen . . . We look forward to having a great relationship with Iran, but it won’t happen now.”

His comments followed an earlier tweet. “Despite requests, I have no plans to meet Iranian President Hassan Rouhani. Maybe someday in the future. I am sure he is an absolutely lovely man!”

On the eve of Mr Trump’s speech the European Union, Iran and other signatories of the deal reiterated their commitment to the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), the official name for the Iran nuclear deal.

On Monday night, they announced the establishment of a special purpose vehicle which would allow companies to continue doing business with Iran, bypassing the US sanctions. EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini said that the new payments system would “allow European companies to continue to trade with Iran in accordance to European Union law”.</s>A showdown looms at the United Nations over Iran on Tuesday as President Donald Trump and Iranian leader Hassan Rouhani are set to square off during the world's biggest diplomatic gathering.

On the opening day of the General Assembly debate, Trump and Rouhani are to take their turn at the podium four months after the US president ditched the Iran nuclear deal.

The five remaining parties to the agreement -- Britain, China, France, Germany and Russia -- announced Monday plans to keep business ties alive with Iran, staring down Washington's move to impose sanctions.

Eyeing his second summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, Trump will also tout his diplomacy with Pyongyang as a win, even if the North has taken little concrete action to dismantle its missile and nuclear programs.

Trump withdrew from the nuclear deal in May, to the dismay of European allies, Russia and China which had invested years in negotiations to achieve a milestone agreement on keeping Iran's nuclear ambitions in check.

In his address, Rouhani will stress that Iran continues to stick to the 2015 deal and portray the United States as a pariah for breaking its international commitments.

Trump used his UN address last year to bash the nuclear deal as "an embarrassment", signaling that the United States was ready to walk away from the agreement.

After its exit, the United States maintains that it is seeking to ramp up pressure on Iran which it accuses of sowing chaos in Iraq, Syria, Yemen and Lebanon.

"As I have said repeatedly, regime change in Iran is not the administration's policy," Trump's national security adviser John Bolton told reporters.

"We've imposed very stringent sanctions on Iran, more are coming, and what we expect from Iran is massive changes in their behavior," he said.

After a late meeting on Monday, EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini announced that a new legal entity would be set up to preserve oil and other business links with Iran.

"This will mean that EU member-states will set up a legal entity to facilitate legitimate financial transactions with Iran and this will allow European companies to continue to trade with Iran," Mogherini told reporters, flanked by Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif.

Rouhani has said he has no plans to meet Trump while in New York during the marathon of meetings and slammed the offer of talks as "not genuine".

As a precondition for any dialogue, Rouhani said Trump would need to repair the damage done by exiting the nuclear deal. "That bridge must be rebuilt," he told NBC news.

On Wednesday, Trump will for the first time chair a meeting of the Security Council on non-proliferation that will give him a fresh opportunity to make the case for a tougher international stance on Iran.

"The Trump administration's approach toward Iran seems to boil down to: squeeze and let's see what will come," said Robert Malley, president of International Crisis Group.

Malley warns that "rising tensions between the US and Iran in the absence of diplomatic channels is a recipe for an accidental, perilous clash."

With only six weeks to go before key midterm US elections, Trump will be seeking to appeal to his hard-right voter base from the dais of the General Assembly.

Trump used his debut address 12 months ago to threaten to "totally destroy" North Korea and belittled its leader as "rocket man," prompting Kim to respond by calling the US president "mentally deranged."

But returning to New York, Trump hailed "tremendous progress" to halt Pyongyang's nuclear and ballistic missile tests and said that a year later it was a "much different time."

"Chairman Kim has been really very open and terrific, frankly, and I think he wants to see something happen," Trump said after meeting South Korean President Moon Jae-in.

Also making his second address at the General Assembly, French President Emmanuel Macron is expected to take issue with Trump's America-First policy and make the case for strengthening the rules-based multilateral order.

Macron is championing the Paris climate agreement on reducing greenhouse gas emissions that Trump ditched in June, arguing it would harm the US economy.
The foreign ministers of Germany, Russia, the United Kingdom, France, China and Iran agree to the creation of a Special Purpose Vehicle, a financial facility in the European Union, to facilitate payments and continue trade with Iran after the US withdrawal from the Iran deal.