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Body of commander slain by U.S. strike arrives in Iran to crowds of mourners Iraq’s prime minister says ‘urgent measures’ should be taken to remove foreign forces
(about 3 hours later)
ISTANBUL — The body of a slain Iranian commander killed in a U.S. drone strike arrived in Iran Sunday as tens of thousands of mourners marched in the streets. ISTANBUL — Iraq's prime minister Sunday urged parliament to take "urgent measures" to force the withdrawal of foreign forces following a U.S. drone strike that killed a senior Iranian commander and key Iraqi militia leader in Baghdad last week.
Maj. Gen. Qasem Soleimani, commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard’s elite Quds Force, was targeted by U.S. forces in Baghdad Friday as he left the airport in a two-car convoy. Eight other people were killed, including Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis, a powerful Iraqi militia leader. In an address to parliament, Prime Minister Adel Abdul Mahdi recommended that the government establish a timetable for the exit of foreign troops, including the members of the U.S.-led coalition to fight the Islamic State, "for the sake of our national sovereignty."
Soleimani’s body was flown to Ahvaz, in southwest Iran, in a flag-draped coffin following a funeral procession in Baghdad and the two Iraqi shrine cities of Karbala and Najaf. "What happened was a political assassination," Abdul Mahdi said of the U.S. strike that targeted Iran's elite Quds Force commander, Maj. Gen. Qasem Soleimani, as traveled in a convoy near the Baghdad airport.
The procession began just hours after President Trump, tweeting from his personal resort in West Palm Beach, Fla., threatened to strike targets in Iran should its forces retaliate against Americans or U.S. interests. He said that foreign troops were in Iraq to train its forces and help target remnants of the Islamic State "under the supervision and approval of the Iraqi government."
He appeared to be responding to remarks by a Revolutionary Guard commander, Gen. Gholamali Abuhamzeh, who suggested Saturday that dozens of American facilities and military assets in the Middle East were at risk, along with Israel, a key U.S. ally. "Iraq cannot accept this," he said. "No foreign troops are allowed to conduct their own military actions inside Iraq."
“If Iran strikes any Americans, or American assets, we have targeted 52 Iranian sites (representing the 52 American hostages taken by Iran many years ago), some at a very high level & important to Iran & the Iranian culture, and those targets, and Iran itself, WILL BE HIT VERY FAST AND VERY HARD.” Trump tweeted. His statement followed an earlier announcement from the U.S.-led coalition saying it had paused its training mission in Iraq due to "repeated rocket attacks over the last two months" by the Iran-backed militia, Kataib Hezbollah. It would now focus on protecting its bases from attack, the coalition said. NATO announced Saturday its own suspension of training programs.
Iran meanwhile said Sunday it would limit its response to the attack to U.S. military targets.
"The response for sure will be military and against military sites," Hossein Dehghan, the military adviser to Iran's supreme leader, said in an interview with CNN. "The only thing that can end this period of war is for the Americans to receive a blow that is equal to the blow they have inflicted."
Iran has vowed revenge against the U.S. But it seems to be in no hurry.Iran has vowed revenge against the U.S. But it seems to be in no hurry.
Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif responded Sunday on Twitter, saying: “Targeting cultural sites is a WAR CRIME.” Iran has 24 locations on the U.N. list of world heritage sites. Deghan’s remarks came as President Trump on Twitter Saturday threatened to strike “52 Iranian sites. . . some at a very high level & important to Iran and the Iranian culture” should Tehran retaliate against Americans or U.S. interests in the region. Iran has 24 locations on the U.N. list of cultural world heritage sites.
In footage broadcast on Iranian state television Sunday, black-clad mourners waving flags and chanting religious slogans filled Ahvaz’s Mollavi Square and surrounding streets, as well as a major bridge. The channel juxtaposed the images of the crowds with a video of a younger Soleimani reciting Persian poetry and Iran’s state-run Islamic Republic News Agency described the scene as “glorious.” If Trump were to carry out his threats, Dehghan said, “no American military staff, no American political center, no American military base, no American vessel will be safe.”
In Saudi Arabia, the U.S. Embassy released a security alert Sunday advising Americans of “the heightened risk of missile and drone attacks” against both civilian and military targets.
The United States blamed Iran for a brazen drone and cruise missile attack on Saudi state oil facilities in September, a strike that knocked half of the nation’s oil production offline.
In Iran, Soleimani’s body was flown in a flag-draped coffin to the southwestern city of Ahvaz, following a funeral procession in Baghdad and Iraq’s twin Shiite shrine cities, Karbala and Najaf. It was later carried to the northeastern city of Mashhad, home to the shrine of Imam Reza, a revered figure in Shiite Islam. Iran is ruled by a Shiite theocracy.
Iran’s new Quds Force commander brings continuity to the post held by his slain predecessor
Footage from Ahvaz broadcast on Iranian state television showed tens of thousands of black-clad mourners waving flags and chanting religious slogans. The channel also juxtaposed the images of the crowds with a video of a younger Soleimani reciting Persian poetry and Iran’s state-run Islamic Republic News Agency described the scene as “glorious.”
“All schools and businesses are closed today — he was popular here and even more popular now,” said Farnaz, 33, a computer engineer and resident of Ahvaz. Like other Iranians contacted Sunday, she spoke on the condition that her full name not be used so she could talk freely about the death of a senior military commander.“All schools and businesses are closed today — he was popular here and even more popular now,” said Farnaz, 33, a computer engineer and resident of Ahvaz. Like other Iranians contacted Sunday, she spoke on the condition that her full name not be used so she could talk freely about the death of a senior military commander.
“People here have felt insecure and threatened by other countries for decades, so they saw Soleimani as an important and charismatic commander who was protecting their security,” she said.“People here have felt insecure and threatened by other countries for decades, so they saw Soleimani as an important and charismatic commander who was protecting their security,” she said.
Still, Ahvaz and other cities in oil-rich Khuzestan province, home to a large ethnic Arab minority, have a history of anti-government unrest. In November, when protests over cuts to fuel subsidies gripped Iranian cities, security forces launched a brutal crackdown and gunned down scores of demonstrators in Mahshahr, some 70 miles south of Ahvaz. On Sunday, unverified video posted online showed masked youth setting fire to a billboard commemorating Soleimani. Still, Ahvaz and other cities in oil-rich Khuzestan province, home to a large ethnic Arab minority, have a history of anti-government unrest. In November, when protests over cuts to fuel subsidies gripped Iranian cities, security forces launched a brutal crackdown and gunned down scores of demonstrators in Mahshahr, some 70 miles south of Ahvaz. On Sunday, an unverified video posted online showed masked youth setting fire to a billboard commemorating Soleimani.
The slain commander’s procession will continue to Mashhad in northeastern Iran, as well as the capital, Tehran, and the holy city of Qom on Monday. Soleimani will be buried in his hometown, Kerman, on Tuesday. The slain commander’s procession will continue Monday to the holy city of Qom and the capital, Tehran, where Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei will lead prayers at the ceremony. Soleimani will be buried in his hometown, Kerman, on Tuesday.
In Mashhad, home to the shrine of Imam Reza, a revered figure in Shiite Islam, residents described a city paralyzed by preparations for the funeral. Many of those already in the streets hailed from Liwa al-Fatemiyoun, a military brigade of mostly Afghan Shiite Hazaras recruited and equipped by the Revolutionary Guard, according to residents. Trump threatens reprisals against Iran should U.S. assets or Americans come under attack
In Mashhad, home to the shrine of Imam Reza, a revered figure in Shiite Islam, residents described a city paralyzed by preparations for the funeral. Many of those in the streets hailed from Liwa al-Fatemiyoun, a military brigade of mostly Afghan Shiite Hazaras recruited and equipped by the Revolutionary Guard, according to residents.
“All the roads are closed and if there is an emergency, there is no way to move,” said 27-year-old Moen, a construction worker.“All the roads are closed and if there is an emergency, there is no way to move,” said 27-year-old Moen, a construction worker.
“People have mixed feelings about his death,” he said. “Most of the people around me are sad, but also afraid that the recent [anti-government] protests and hundreds of people killed were in vain.”“People have mixed feelings about his death,” he said. “Most of the people around me are sad, but also afraid that the recent [anti-government] protests and hundreds of people killed were in vain.”
Trump threatens reprisals against Iran should U.S. assets or Americans come under attack In Europe, meanwhile, leaders continued to try to salvage the Iran nuclear deal, whose already limited chances of survival have likely been dealt a grievous blow by Soleimani’s killing.
On Saturday, Iraq was the uneasy epicenter of a region on edge, with rockets falling after dark and mourners chanting anti-American slogans at two prominent religious sites. On Sunday, E.U. foreign policy chief Josep Borrell announced he had invited Iranian Foreign Minister Mohamed Javad Zarif to Brussels to discuss the future of the accord even as Iran indicated plans to further reduce its commitments to the deal.
Iraqi Prime Minister Adel Abdul Mahdi called the attack “an assassination” that was a “flagrant violation of the conditions authorizing the presence of U.S. troops” on Iraqi soil. Borrell intends to “keep the unity of the remaining participants in support of the agreement and its full implementation by all parties,” his office said in a statement.
Rockets were later fired toward Baghdad’s Green Zone, site of the U.S. Embassy, and at an air base hosting U.S. troops north of Baghdad. U.S. and Iraqi officials said they caused no casualties. Kareem Fahim in Istanbul and Michael Birnbaum in Antwerp contributed to this report.
Iran’s new Quds Force commander brings continuity to the post held by his slain predecessor
A spokesman for the U.S.-led military coalition against the Islamic State said that “we have increased security and defensive measures at the Iraqi bases that host anti-ISIS coalition troops.”
Kataib Hezbollah, an Iraqi militia backed by Iran, also warned members of Iraqi security forces to keep more than half a mile from U.S. military bases, beginning Sunday evening. The militia, which led a siege of the U.S. Embassy before Soleimani’s killing, did not say why it issued the warning.
NATO, which has several hundred personnel in Iraq, announced that it was suspending its training of Iraqi troops.
“The safety of our personnel in Iraq is paramount. We continue to take all precautions necessary,” a NATO spokesman, Dylan White, said in an emailed statement.
Kareem Fahim in Istanbul and Mustafa Salim in Baghdad contributed to this report.
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Why Soleimani’s killing is different from other targeted attacks by U.S.Why Soleimani’s killing is different from other targeted attacks by U.S.
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