Parliament Speaker Ali Larijani said on Sunday that the Iranian legislature will seriously pursue the case for the country’s retaliation for the assassination of anti-terror commander General Qassem Soleimani and his companions by the terrorist army of the US in Baghdad. RNA - Before the start of the open session of the parliament this morning, Larijani reiterated that the Iranian Parliament will resolutely follow up the case to see all perpetrators of the criminal act against General Soleimani punished.
He underlined that the “shocking” terrorist attack of Friday suddenly changed the situation in the region and in the whole world.
Highlighting the bold role of the late commander in fighting against the ISIL, the top MP said that General Soleimani rushed to help the nations of Iraq and Syria upon the request of legitimate governments of the two countries and his meticulous plans eliminated terrorism in the region. “Accordingly, his martyrdom has given a strange shock to the nations of the region.”
Lieutenant General Soleimani, the hero of anti-terrorism fight in the Middle East, was martyred in a targeted assassination attack by the US aircraft at Baghdad International Airport early Friday morning. The airstrike also martyred Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis, the deputy commander of Iraq’s anti-terror Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF).
They were assassinated in the US strike on their motorcade just outside Baghdad airport as Gen. Soleimani’s flight arrived from Syria, leading to speculations that the Israeli intelligence might have played a role.
"General Qassem Soleimani has been martyred by the US helicopters after lifetime efforts," the IRGC said in a statement early Friday morning.
A PMF official said 10 people were martyred by missiles fired by the US helicopters at Baghdad International Airport.
He said the dead included the PMF airport protocol officer, Mohammed Reda.
The central HQ of IRGC’s Qods Force issued a statement on Friday, recounting that during the terrorist attack of Americans, 10 people were martyred, out of them 5 were Iranian, including Lieutenant General Soleimani, and 5 of them were Iraqi, including Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis.
The Pentagon confirmed the attack in a statement.
The attack came amid tensions that started by the US attack on PMF units that killed 28 Iraqi popular forces. A day later, Iraqi people attacked the US embassy in Baghdad. On Wednesday President Donald Trump ordered about 750 US soldiers deployed to the Middle East.
US officials earlier suggested they were to engage in further retaliatory attacks in Iraq.
The developments also represent a major downturn in Iraq-US relations that could further undermine US influence in the region and American troops in Iraq and weaken Washington’s hand in its pressure campaign against Iran.
US President Donald Trump was vacationing on his estate in Palm Beach, Florida, but sent out a tweet of an American flag.
The attack represents a dramatic escalation by the US toward Iran after months of tensions. The tensions take root in Trump’s decision in May 2018 to withdraw the US from Iran’s nuclear deal with world powers, struck under his predecessor.
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