Pentagon responds to UN report on Soleimani’s 'unlawful' assassination

People gather to stage a protest against the killing of Iranian Revolutionary Guards’ Quds Force commander Qasem Soleimani by a US air strike in the Iraqi capital Baghdad, 3 January 2020 [Fatemeh Bahrami/Anadolu Agency]

Iran Quds Force chief, Qassem Soleimani, Soleimani was “planning for terrorist attacks against American interests and other countries before he was targeted” in US forces in Iraq, the Pentagon said yesterday.

The comments came in response to a report issued by the United Nations Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions, Agnes Callamard, in which she described the Soleimani’s assassination by the US as an “unlawful” and “arbitrary killing”.

A Pentagon official told Al-Hurra news channel that Soleimani’s assassination had served regional stability and prevented Tehran from destablising neighbouring countries, adding that targeting him was part of the Pentagon’s strategy against terrorists in the world.

In January, US President Donald Trump ordered the killing of Soleimani in a US drone attack against his convoy near Baghdad International Airport.

The United States has repeatedly accused Soleimani of planning attacks against American soldiers in Iraq and neighbouring countries.

READ: Iran issues arrest warrant for US President Trump

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