Iran has accused foreign foes of trying to spark "civil war" by stoking the protests over Mahsa Amini's death -- harsh language that, analysts warn, could presage an even bloodier crackdown. 

Fears that Iran is sliding into deeper violence have grown since Wednesday, when assailants on motorcycles gunned down nine people -- including a woman and two boys aged nine and 13 -- in two mysterious attacks.More People Switching to VoIP Phones (Take a Look at the Prices)AdVoIP PhoneOfficials in Iran were quick to accuse "terrorists" backed by its Western enemies of being behind the attacks in the southern cities of Izeh and Isfahan, which authorities said also left dead two security personnel.It was the second attack the authorities have blamed on what they labelled terrorists since the protests erupted, after at least 13 people were killed at a shrine in Shiraz, another city in southern Iran, on October 26.Analysts say however that, regardless of who carried out the latest attacks, they could result in an even bloodier response to the protests that erupted after Amini's death on September 16, following her arrest for an alleged breach of Iran's dress code for women."We don't have a good sense of what happened in Izeh and Isfahan -- was it a terrorist group, or potentially the regime itself?" said Henry Rome, an Iran expert at the Washington Institute."Either way, the government will probably use the attacks to send the message that the protests are undermining national security and opening the door for Western-backed terrorism," he told AFP.