Baghdad/Washington: Iran said it launched a missile attack on US-led forces in Iraq in the early hours of Wednesday in retaliation for the US drone strike on an Iranian commander whose killing has raised fears of a wider war in the Middle East.
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Tehran fired more than a dozen ballistic missiles from Iranian territory against at least two Iraqi military bases hosting US-led coalition personnel at about 1.30am local time (2.30am UAE), the US military said on Tuesday.
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Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps confirmed that they fired the rockets to retaliate for last week’s killing of Qassem Soleimani, according to a statement on state TV.
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The statement advised the United States to withdraw its troops from the region to prevent more deaths, state TV said. Follow the live updates here:
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UAE issues statement
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The UAE issued a statement saying it is following up with great interest the general situation in the region, while reiterating the importance of de-escalation.
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In a statement, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation reiterated that diplomatic means and rational dialogue are the best solution.
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The ministry affirms that the latest regional developments will not affect the UAE, or its citizens, expatriate residents or visitors. All activities in the country’s sectors are fuctioning as normal.
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Iraq speaker condemns ‘Iranian violation of Iraqi sovereignty’
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The speaker of the Iraqi parliament, Mohammed al-Halbusi, on Wednesday condemned a salvo of retaliatory Iranian missile strikes on Iraqi bases housing US-led troops as a “violation of Iraqi sovereignty”.
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Halbusi, the most senior Sunni Arab in Iraq’s confessional power-sharing system, called for urgent measures to stop Iraq being turned into a proxy battlefield for outside powers, including Shiite Iran.
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“While we condemn the Iranian violation of Iraqi sovereignty at dawn today… we confirm our absolute refusal to the conflicting parties to use the Iraqi arena to settle scores,” he said.
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Turkish foreign minister to visit Iraq Thursday
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Turkey’s foreign minister will visit Iraq on Thursday as part of diplomatic efforts to “alleviate the escalated tension” in the region, a ministry statement said.
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Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu also spoke with his Iranian counterpart Wednesday after Iran fired more than 20 missiles overnight at bases in Iraq used by US troops in retaliation for the US killing of Iran’s top military commander last week in Baghdad.
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Turkey has called for calm and expressed concern about regional security after the US drone strike. Turkey shares a border with Iran and Iraq and is engaged militarily in northern Iraq against Kurdish militants.
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UK’s Johnson urges Iran to pursue ‘urgent de-escalation’
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British Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Wednesday called on Iran not to repeat rocket attacks on Iraqi bases housing coalition forces after a US strike killed one of Tehran’s top commanders.
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Johnson told parliament: “Iran should not repeat these reckless and dangerous attacks but should instead pursue urgent de-escalation.”
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NATO chief condemns Iran rocket attacks
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NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg on Wednesday condemned Iranian rocket attacks on Iraqi bases housing US troops, carried out in revenge for the killing of one of Tehran’s top commanders in an American drone strike.
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“I condemn the Iranian missile attacks on US and coalition forces in Iraq. NATO calls on Iran to refrain from further violence,” Stoltenberg tweeted.
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A NATO official said that there were no casualties among the troops on its training mission in Iraq.
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Iraq says Iran informed it of imminent missile attack
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Iraq’s prime minister’s office said Wednesday it had received “an official verbal message” from Iran informing it that a missile attack on US forces stationed on Iraqi soil was imminent, reports AFP.
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“We received an official verbal message from the Islamic Republic of Iran that the Iranian response to the assassination of Qasem Soleimani had begun or would begin shortly, and that the strike would be limited to where the US military was located in Iraq without specifying the locations,” the office said.
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Lufthansa says halts overflying Iran and Iraq
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German airline giant Lufthansa said Wednesday it would not overfly Iran and Iraq “until further notice”, after Tehran launched missiles at US bases in Iraq.
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“We are no longer overflying Iran and Iraq until further notice,” a Lufthansa spokesman told AFP, adding that Wednesday’s daily Frankfurt-Tehran flight was cancelled, while Saturday’s twice-weekly service to northern Iraqi city Erbil would also not depart.
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Gargash calls for restraint
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It is essential that the region pulls back from the current and troubling tensions, UAE UAE Minister Anwar Gargash said. “De-escalation is both wise and necessary. A political path towards stability must follow,” he tweeted.
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Essential that the region pulls back from the current & troubling tensions. De escalation is both wise & necessary. A political path towards stability must follow.
— د. أنور قرقاش (@AnwarGargash) January 8, 2020
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Ukraine International suspends Iran flights
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Ukraine International Airlines involved in a crash that killed about 170 people on board early Wednesday has suspended flights to Tehran indefinitely, the airline said in a statement.
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Concerned about reports of casualties: Dominic Raab
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British Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab says the UK condemns Iran’s attacks on Iraqi military bases that were hosting UK, US, and other coalition forces.
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He says he is “concerned” by reports of casualties and the use of ballistic missiles.
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“We urge Iran not to repeat these reckless and dangerous attacks, and instead to pursue urgent de-escalation,” he says.
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“A war in the Middle East would only benefit Daesh and other terrorist groups.”
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Early warning received: Official
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A US military official told CNN that the US military had received an early warning about the Iranian missile strike.
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The American official, who was not named by the network, added that the warning received by the American military was early, and sufficient to enable them to reach the fortified rooms at the base.
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Attack on US base in Iraq ‘successful’: Iran’s Khamenei
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The attack against US military and coalition forces in Iraq was successful, Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei said on Wednesday in a televised speech.
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Airlines change routes to avoid Iranian airspace
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Air Canada, Singapore Airlines and Srilankan Airlines altered their routes to avoid Iranian airspace. Other carriers in the Middle East continue to fly over Iran and Iraq, based on data from Flightradar24.com.
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Iran’s missile power
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How the US base was attacked
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According to the Iraqi security official twitter account Iraq was under attack by 22 missiles. Seventeen fell on Ain Al Assad airbase, including two that did not explode in Al Hitan area. And another 5 rockets fell in Arbil.
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He confirmed that all missiles fell on the coalition headquarters, and no casualties were recorded in the Iraqi forces.
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Emirates cancels Baghdad flight
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Emirates Airline cancelled a return flight to Baghdad on Wednesday following Iran’s missile attack on U.S.-led forces in Iraq.
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“We are carefully monitoring the developments and are in close contact with the relevant government authorities with regards to our flight operations, and will make further operational changes if required,” Emirates said in a statement.
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Its sister carrier, flydubai, also cancelled a Wednesday flight to Baghdad.
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Norway says none of its soldiers injured or killed
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No Norwegian soldiers were injured or killed in Iran’s missile strike on the Al Asad air base in Iraq, a Norwegian military spokesman told Reuters early on Wednesday.
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The Nordic country has about 70 soldiers at the base, said Brynjar Stordal at Norway’s military headquarters.
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Indians asked to be vigilant, avoid travel
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India’s Ministry of External Affairs has asked Indians to avoid all non-essential travel to Iraq and those residing there to be on alert and avoid travel within.
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DGCA, Directorate General of Civil Aviation, Government of India, asked Indian airlines to remain vigilant, take all precautions in airspace over Iran, Iraq, Gulf of Oman, waters of Arabian Gulf.
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Oil jumps after Iran attacks reignite fears
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Oil prices jumped after Iran attacked two US-Iraqi bases in its first response to the killing of its top general, sparking fears the deepening conflict will disrupt global crude supplies.
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Futures in London briefly surged more than 5% to almost $72 a barrel as the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps claimed responsibility for the missile strikes, which the Pentagon said were launched from Iran. Prices later pared more than half that advance after Iran’s foreign minister said it had “concluded proportionate measures in self-defense” and US President Donald Trump tweeted that “all is well” following the attacks.
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Philippines orders citizens in Iraq to leave
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The Philippines has ordered its citizens to leave Iraq, the Philippine foreign ministry said on Wednesday, after Iran attacked US forces there in response to a US strike that killed an Iranian general last week.
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“The alert level in the entire Iraq has been raised to alert level 4 calling for mandatory evacuation,” said Eduardo Menez, spokesman at the Department of Foreign Affairs.
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The department said there are 1,600 Filipinos working in Iraq, more than half in the Kurdistan region and the rest at US and other foreign facilities in Baghdad and in commercial establishments in Erbil.
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Ukrainian plane crashes in Iran
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Ukrainian Boeing 737 with 180 aboard crashes due to technical problems after take-off from Iran’s Imam Khomeini airport, Reuters reports quoting, Fars News.
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All is well: Trump
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“All is well,” US President Donald Trump tweeted.
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“Missiles launched from Iran at two military bases located in Iraq. Assessment of casualties & damages taking place now. So far, so good! We have the most powerful and well equipped military anywhere in the world, by far!”
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He will be making a statemenet later, Trump added.
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The Pentagon did not provide reports of casualties in the attack.
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“We are working on initial battle damage assessments,” Pentagon spokesman Jonathan Hoffman said in a statement, adding that the bases targeted were Al Asad air base and another in Erbil, Iraq.
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“As we evaluate the situation and our response, we will take all necessary measures to protect and defend US personnel, partners, and allies in the region.” US President Donald Trump, who visited the Al Asad air base in December 2018, has been briefed on reports of the attack and was monitoring the situation, White House spokeswoman Stephanie Grisham said.
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“We are aware of the reports of attacks on US facilities in Iraq. The president has been briefed and is monitoring the situation closely and consulting with his national security team,” Grisham said in a statement.
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US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and US Defense Secretary Mark Esper arrived at the White House following news of the attack. It was unclear what response, if any, the United States was planning.
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Hours earlier on Tuesday, Esper said the United States should anticipate retaliation from Iran over Friday’s killing in Iraq of Soleimani, commander of the elite Quds Force.
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“I think we should expect that they will retaliate in some way, shape or form,” he told a news briefing at the Pentagon, adding that such retaliation could be through Iran-backed proxy groups outside of Iran or “by their own hand.” “We’re prepared for any contingency. And then we will respond appropriately to whatever they do.” Stock markets in Asia fell sharply on news of the rocket attack, while investor safe havens including the Japanese yen and gold shot higher.
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Soleimani, a pivotal figure in orchestrating Iran’s long-standing campaign to drive US forces out of Iraq, was also responsible for building up Tehran’s network of proxy armies across the Middle East.
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He was a national hero to many Iranians, whether supporters of the clerical leadership or not, but viewed as a dangerous villain by Western governments opposed to Iran’s arc of influence running across the Levant and into the Gulf region.
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‘We will take revenge’
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A senior Iranian official said on Tuesday that Tehran was considering several scenarios to avenge Soleimani’s death. Other senior figures have said the Islamic Republic would match the scale of the killing when it responds, but that it would choose the time and place.
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“We will take revenge, a hard and definitive revenge,” the head of Iran’s Revolutionary Guards, General Hossein Salami, told throngs who crowded the streets for Soleimani’s funeral on Tuesday in Kerman, his hometown in southeastern Iran.
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Soleimani’s burial went ahead after several hours of delay following a stampede that killed at least 56 people and injured more than 210, according an emergency official quoted by Iran’s semi-official Fars news agency.
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Soleimani’s body had been taken to cities in Iraq and Iran, as well as the Iranian capital, Tehran, before arriving to be buried in the city cemetery’s “martyrs section”, according to the semi-official news agency ISNA.
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In each place, huge numbers of people filled thoroughfares, chanting: “Death to America” and weeping with emotion. Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei wept as he led prayers in Tehran.
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Prompted by the strong public backlash over Soleimani’s killing on Iraqi soil, lawmakers in Iraq voted on Sunday to demand a removal of all foreign forces from the country.
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More than 5,000 US troops remain in Iraq along with other foreign forces as part of a coalition that has trained and backed up Iraqi security forces against the threat of Islamic State militants.
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A Nato official told Reuters it would move some of its several hundred trainers out of Iraq. Canada said on Tuesday some of its 500 Iraq-based forces would be temporarily moved to Kuwait for safety reasons.
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French President Emmanuel Macron, in a phone call on Tuesday to Iran’s president, Hassan Rouhani, urged Tehran to avoid any actions that could worsen regional tensions.
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US officials have said Soleimani was killed because of solid intelligence indicating forces under his command planned attacks on US targets in the region, although they have provided no evidence.
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Ali Shamkhani, secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, said 13 “revenge scenarios” were being considered, Fars news agency reported. Even the weakest option would prove “a historic nightmare for the Americans”, he said.
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