Iranian diplomat in Erbil echos vows of 'revenge' for Soleimani killing
ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – An Iranian diplomat in Erbil told Kurdistan 24 on Sunday that the killing of prominent Iranian general Qassem Soleimani, killed in a US airstrike near Baghdad International Airport two days before, would have long-ranging consequences in Iraq and the greater Middle East.
“Revenge is the demand of all Iranian people, and indeed the demand of the Islamic world and the axis of resistance,” said Iranian Consul in Erbil Nasrallah Rashnoudi on the sidelines of a funeral ceremony for Soleimani, held at the consulate.
“Without a doubt,” he continued, “we will take revenge in the right time and place, and there is no doubt also that the blood of the martyrs will not be without response.”
“We seek to undermine the plans initiated by America to destroy the security of the region.”
Early Friday, an American drone assassinated former chief of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps’ (IRGC) Quds Force Qassim Soleimani and Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis, the head of the Tehran-aligned Kata’ib Hizbollah (KH) militia in Iraq.
Read More: US strike kills Qasim Soleimani and Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis
Iraqi officials have roundly condemned the US strike, which took place just outside the Baghdad International Airport after Soleimani met up with Muhandis. Days earlier, they had condemned militiamen and supporters after they attempted to storm the US embassy in the Iraqi capital, torching parts of it.
Read More: Top Iraqi officials condemn attempts to storm US embassy in Baghdad
Caught in the middle of two nations with which they must deal, many officials from both the federal government in Baghdad and the Kurdistan Region have called for restraint and calm, stressing that Iraq must not be an arena for settling international scores.