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Millions of mourners join Soleimani’s funeral in Tehran

Published : Tuesday, 7 January, 2020 at 12:00 AM  Count : 477

Iranian mourners take part in a funeral procession in Enghelab Square in the capital Tehran on Monday for slain military commander Qasem Soleimani, Iraqi  paramilitary chief Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis, and other victims of a US attack.

Iranian mourners take part in a funeral procession in Enghelab Square in the capital Tehran on Monday for slain military commander Qasem Soleimani, Iraqi paramilitary chief Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis, and other victims of a US attack.

TEHRAN, Jan 6: A sea of black-clad Iranians on Monday mourned the top commander killed in last week's US drone strike that inflamed tensions across the Middle East, as NATO was set to discuss the spiralling crisis.
Iranians clutching "Down with USA" signs and portraits of their hero Qasem Soleimani massed as supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei presided over prayers for the slain head of the Revolutionary Guards' Quds Force.
The targeted killing of 62-year-old Soleimani ordered by US President Donald Trump saw the Islamic republic vow "severe revenge" before Tehran also took a further step back from the already tattered 2015 nuclear accord with world powers.
In an escalating war of words that has heightened international concern and rattled financial markets, Trump threatened yet more "major retaliation" if Tehran hits back, including strikes on Iranian cultural sites.
Iraq's parliament meanwhile demanded the government expel the 5,200 American troops stationed in the country in response to the Baghdad drone attack which also killed top Iraqi military figure Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis. Trump has warned that a forced departure of US troops would prompt sanctions against Iraq that would "make Iranian sanctions look somewhat tame".
Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei (L) weeping as he recites a prayer in front of the coffin of Soleimani duing the funeral procession.	photo: AFP

Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei (L) weeping as he recites a prayer in front of the coffin of Soleimani duing the funeral procession. photo: AFP

NATO ambassadors were to hold an extraordinary meeting at Brussels headquarters to "address the situation in the region," said an official of the alliance, which has been forced to suspend its training mission in Iraq.
Germany, France and Britain urged Iran to refrain from taking "further violent actions or support for them", or from steps that further weaken the 2015 nuclear deal. "It is crucial now to de-escalate," German Chancellor Angela Merkel, French President Emmanuel Macron and British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said in a joint statement Sunday. "We call on all the players involved to show utmost restraint and responsibility."
The nuclear deal had offered Tehran relief from sanctions in return for curbs to prevent it acquiring nuclear weapons -- but Trump's withdrawal from it in 2018 dramatically weakened the agreement. Despite its latest nuclear step back on Sunday, Iran insisted it will continue to fully cooperate with the UN agency overseeing its atomic programme.     -AFP









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