Iran Summons German Envoy over Support for US Strike

In a statement on Sunday, the Foreign Ministry said after the “untrue, thoughtless and destructive” remarks that a number of German officials have made in support of the US’ terrorist assault on Iraq which led to the martyrdom of General Soleimani and his entourage, Germany’s charge d’affaires was summoned on Sunday in the German ambassador’s absence to receive the Islamic Republic of Iran’s strong protest against the one-sided stances from Germans.

In the meeting, director of the Second Department for Western Europe at the Foreign Ministry highlighted General Soleimani’s influential and decisive role in establishing stability and security in West Asia, adding, “Martyr General Soleimani is revered as a hero of the fight against terrorism and Daesh (ISIS) not only in Iran, but also at the regional and international levels. Thus, such one-sided and unacceptable stances (from German officials) run counter to the traditional cooperation between the two countries (Iran and Germany) and also to the regional stability and security.”

For his part, the German charge d’affaires affirmed General Soleimani’s popularity in Iran, saying he will convey Iran’s protest to Germany immediately, the Foreign Ministry’s website reported.

On Friday, a German government spokeswoman claimed the US strike against General Soleimani was a reaction to military provocations by Iran.

“The American action was a reaction to a series of military provocations for which Iran is responsible,” Ulrike Demmer said during a regular government news conference.

“We also see with great concern Iran’s activities in the region. We stand before a dangerous escalation,” she said, adding that Germany would work to de-escalate the situation.

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.