Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said that the United States may have "cut off the arm" of General Qassem Soleimani, but his country would respond by cutting off the United States "legs" in the region.
Rouhani's comments came after Iran fired more than 20 missiles at American targets in Iraq at dawn today, in response to a US attack by a drone that killed Soleimani - commander of the Qods Force in the Iranian Revolutionary Guard - at dawn Friday.
On his part, Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said that Tehran's missile attacks on American targets are a "slap in the face" of the United States, and that it should withdraw its forces from the region.
"Such military action is not enough. The important thing is to end the corrupt US presence in the region," he said in a televised address.
He added: "This region will not accept the presence of America," reiterating Tehran's long-standing demand for Washington to withdraw its forces. A senior official in Khamenei's office said that the latest missile attacks are the "lesser" in Iran's response scenarios.
However, Foreign Minister Muhammad Javad Zarif hinted that these strikes are the "only response" to Iran over the killing of Soleimani, saying that the strikes "are a reprisal equivalent to the killing of General Soleimani and that Tehran will suffice with this response and does not seek to escalate.
He stressed that the attacks are a legitimate self defense, "adding that Washington's assessment of the Iranian response should not be based on" delusions. "
[caption id="attachment_101992" align="aligncenter" width="296"]
Wreckage of Iran rockets which targeted US bases[/caption]
" Russia Today "quoted Zarif that his country sent a message to America via Switzerland, which takes care of its interests, immediately after launching a missile attack on the base that targeted Soleimani.
In the same context, analysts considered that Iran "did everything in its power to avoid the American deaths in the attacks." Associated Press quoted analysts at the Royal Defense College in Denmark that "Iran has almost already warned the United States of its plans to respond" (in order for the American forces to prepare for this).
While a presidential adviser in Iran reiterated that any US response to the recent strikes "will be faced with all-out war in the region," government spokesman Ali Rabei stressed that his country "is not seeking war" but would respond "overwhelmingly" to any aggression.
On his part, Iranian Defense Minister Amir Hatami said that his country would respond proportionally to any new American military action in retaliation after the missile attacks, adding that US President Donald Trump "turned the American administration into a terrorist government."
The Iranian television had said that 80 people were killed in the missile strikes launched by the Iranian army on two American bases in the northern Kurdistan region and in Anbar province.
The television also said that "American helicopters and American equipment were attacked in the attacks." Iranian television said that the United States is trying to play down the damage caused by the attack in Iraq, noting that the American president later tweeted about the attacks, in which he said, "Everything is fine."
"Now we have taken revenge ... He can rest in peace," the television said, referring to Soleimani.
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