Zarif: US Responsible for Consequences of Gen. Soleimani’s Assassination


TEHRAN (Tasnim) – Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif held the US government accountable for the consequences of assassination of IRGC Quds Force Commander Major General Qassem Soleimani.

Foreign Minister of Qatar Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani arrived in Tehran on Saturday morning and held a meeting with his Iranian counterpart at Iran’s Foreign Ministry.

In the gathering, the two top diplomats discussed the latest developments in the bilateral relations between Iran and Qatar and the most important regional and international developments, particularly the situation in Iraq and the US assassination of Major General Soleimani.

Describing as “delicate and worrying” the current stressful situation in the region following the American drone strike against the Iranian commander, the Qatari foreign minister said a peaceful solution should be found to reduce the tensions and restore calm to the region.

For his part, Zarif denounced the terrorist measure by the American military forces to assassinate General Soleimani, and held the US regime accountable for the consequences of the attack.

“The Islamic Republic of Iran does not seek tensions in the region, but the presence and interference of the foreign and extra-regional forces have caused instability, insecurity and escalation of tensions in our delicate region,” Zarif added.

The Iranian and Qatari foreign ministers also hailed the very good bilateral relations in all fields, and stressed the need to develop and deepen the ties.

An American drone attack, carried out at the direction of US President Donald Trump, killed Major General Soleimani, the deputy head of Iraq’s Hashd al-Shaabi, and a number of their entourage near Baghdad International Airport in the early hours of Friday.