Iraq summons US ambassador over killing of Qasem Soleimani and calls act 'blatant violation of sovereignty'

Qasem Soleimani was killed during a US strike in Iraq
AP
Stephanie Cockroft5 January 2020

Iraq's foreign ministry has summoned the US ambassador over the airstrike which killed top Iranian General Qasem Soleimani.

It denounced the repeated airstrikes as a "blatant violation of sovereignty and break of agreement with the US-led coalition."

The ministry also said Iraqi soil should not be used to attack neighbouring countries.

It added that the US started adopting a policy of "with us or against us" after it pulled out of the nuclear agreement with Iran.

General Soleimani was killed on Friday in a strike on Baghdad's international airport.

The strike escalated the crisis between Tehran and Washington after months of trading attacks and threats that put the wider Middle East on edge.

The conflict is rooted in Mr Trump pulling out of Iran's atomic accord.

Mr Trump has threatened to bomb 52 sites in Iran if it retaliates by attacking Americans.

The US Embassy in Saudi Arabia separately warned Americans "of the heightened risk of missile and drone attacks."

Meanwhile, Iran vowed to take an even-greater step away from its unravelling nuclear deal with world powers as a response to Soleimani's slaying.

It came as Iraq's parliament started its extraordinary session on Sunday with Prime Minister Adel Abdul Mahdi in attendance.

Iraqi lawmakers said they would use the special session to push for a vote on a resolution requiring the government to tell Washington to withdraw U.S. troops from the country.

The United States-led international coalition against Islamic State said on Sunday it had paused its training and support of Iraqi security forces due to repeated rocket attacks on bases housing its troops.

"Our first priority is protecting all Coalition personnel committed to the defeat of Daesh. Repeated rocket attacks over the last two months by elements of Kata'ib Hezbollah have caused the death of Iraqi Security Forces personnel and a U.S. civilian," it said in a statement.

"As a result we are now fully committed to protecting the Iraqi bases that host Coalition troops. This has limited our capacity to conduct training with partners and to support their operations against Daesh and we have therefore paused these activities, subject to continuous review."

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