Qasem Soleimani, the commander of the Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps' elite Quds force, who was killed in a US drone strike near Iraq's Baghdad International Airport in early January, could easily eliminate US generals in the region, but was seeking stability instead, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said on Monday
TEHRAN (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 10th February, 2020) Qasem Soleimani, the commander of the Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps' elite Quds force, who was killed in a US drone strike near Iraq's Baghdad International Airport in early January, could easily eliminate US generals in the region, but was seeking stability instead, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said on Monday.
"No one in our region doubts that General Soleimani was looking for stability and peace in the region. It was easy for General Soleimani to kill the American generals if he wanted, but he never did, and I testify this as someone who was fully aware of the actions of the Quds Force and Commander Soleimani in the region," Rouhani said at a meeting with heads of foreign diplomatic missions and representative offices in Tehran.
According to the president, the assassination of a person who was officially in the territory of another country is a violation of all international standards.
Soleimani had no plans for action against the United States when arriving in Iraq in early January, Rouhani said.
"The route of General Soleimani was not from the airport to the battlefield, not to a field of action against the United States, but from the airport to a meeting venue with the Prime Minister of Iraq, the highest official of the country, hours later. The great crime is condemned by us, the world and international law," Rouhani said.
US President Donald Trump claimed that Iran was planning an attack on four US embassies, including in Baghdad, at the time of the US operation to kill Soleimani.
