Iran will retaliate to the US for the murder of Suleimani

1 Iran

An official spokesman for the Iranian government, Ali Rabii, announced that Iran will respond to the US assassination of the head of the Iranian special forces ‘Quds’, the ‘Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps’, Kassem Suleimani, in the near future. «The US crossed the red line. The Iranian nation will decisively take a retaliatory action at the right time» — Ali Rabia said. The head of the Iranian Special Forces ‘Quds’, the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps, General Kassem Suleimani, was killed as a result of the US air strikes at Baghdad’s international airport. The Supreme Iranian Leader and the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces, Ali Khamenei, has appointed Brigadier-General Esmail Qaani as the commander of the Quds special forces. Previously, he was the deputy of the deceased Suleymani.

2 Iraq

Abdulkarim Khalaf, an official spokesman for the Iraqi Supreme Command, announced that the Iraqi authorities were not aware of the upcoming US air strike on Baghdad. He called the actions of the United States a gross violation of the Iraqi sovereignty and a neglect of the cooperation between the Iraqi armed forces and the coalition. «The country’s armed forces are ready for any consequences of this airstrike» — he concluded. The two largest political groups in the Iraqi parliament called for an adoption of a law on the withdrawal of the foreign troops from the country.

3 the USA

The US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo announced during an interview to the CNN that the US are ready for any possible Iranian response to the assassination of the General Kassem Suleimani. «We have identified many possible options. We are ready for any possible reaction from Iran» — said Mike Pompeo. He also said that the United States will continue to protect their interests in Iraq, and the sovereignty of that country. The US State Department announced that during Pompeo’s telephone conversation with Yang Jiechi, a member of the Chinese political bureau of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China — the head of the Chancellery of the CPC of the Central Committee of the Foreign Affairs — «the US Secretary of State underlined that the US remain committed to the de-escalation in the region».

4 Tajikistan — Afghanistan

The OSCE Program Office in Dushanbe has launched the «Stabilization of Tajikistan’s Southern Border with Afghanistan» project — a spokeswoman of the OSCE office, Munira Shoinbekova, told to the RIA NEWS. According to her — this project is aimed at the increase of the professional potential of the border services of Tajikistan and Afghanistan, in order to counter the illegal activities in border areas more effectively. The project will be implemented within 18 months.