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Merits of Maj Gen Soleimani in Fight Against Daesh Are Unquestionable - Russian Military

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - The short-sighted actions by the United States that led to the death of Iran's Quds commander Qasem Soleimani will result in a sharp escalation of the situation in the Middle East, the Russian Defence Ministry said.
Sputnik
"The short-sighted steps by the United States that resulted in the killing of Qasem Soleimani lead to a sharp escalation of the military-political situation in the Middle East region and to serious negative consequences for the entire global security system", the ministry said in a statement.

The ministry said that long before the US-led coalition, Soleimani had organised armed resistance to the Daesh* terrorist group and al-Qaeda* in Syria and Iraq. 

"His personal merits in fighting against Daesh on Syrian territory are unquestionable", it said.

The statement comes after Soleimani and Iraqi militia commander Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis along with 10 other people were killed on Friday morning in an airstrike on the outskirts of Baghdad that was authorized by US President Donald Trump.

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Earlier in the day, Influential Shiite politician and prominent cleric Muqtada al-Sadr called on supporters to be ready to defend the country, while Popular Mobilization Forces also urged followers to prepare for a response to Washington.

In Iran, Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and President Hassan Rouhani vowed to avenge Soleimani’s assassination.

*Daesh (also known as ISIS/ISIL/IS) and Al Qaeda are terrorist groups banned in Russia

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