'Thugs' creating instability, Iran says

TEHRAN, July 22 (UPI) -- Iran's neighbors shouldn't be a playground for "thugs" bent on harming diplomatic ties in the Asian community, the Iranian interior minister said.

Tehran welcomed a delegation from Islamabad following two bombings in the border province of Sistan-Baluchistan. The Pakistani Sunni militant group Jundallah claimed responsibility for the attack that killed at least 22 people.

Iranian Interior Minister Mostafa Mohammad-Najjar said "thugs" in the region were trying to undermine Tehran's relationship with its partners in Islamabad.

"Neighboring countries should not become the backyard of a group of thugs who act against the interests of our establishment," he was quoted by Press TV as saying.

Ali Larijani, the speaker of the Iranian parliament, expressed his concern over security issues along the southern Iranian border with Pakistan.

"Iran expects Pakistan's security services to seriously cooperate," he said.

Jundallah claimed responsibility for an October attack in southern Iran that left several members of the Iran Revolutionary Guard Corps dead.

Tehran has accused the United States of supporting the group.