Baghdad: tear gas against demonstrators. Khamenei responds to Trump: he reasons and then tweets

2020-01-01T11:07:18.521Z

Security forces from the American Embassy in Baghdad launched tear gas to disperse pro-Iranian protesters who had spent the night outside the compound gates and who burned a star and stripe flag. Thousands of supporters of Iraqi armed factions near Iran gathered yesterday in front of the embassy in protest against US airstrikes that killed 25 pro-Iranian fighters over the weekend. Meanwhile, Iran's supreme leader, Ali Khamenei, responds to accusations by the American president, Donald Trump, about involvement in the siege of the US embassy in Baghdad. "If the Islamic Republic decides to fight, it will do so unequivocally. We do not seek wars, but we strongly defend the interests, dignity and glory of the Iranian nation. If someone threatens them, we will confront each other without hesitation and we will hit him" , tweeted Khamenei. "He writes tweets accusing Iran and threatening the country with reprisals ... Damn you, but think", said leader Khamenei. "If we decide to fight with a country - he added -, we will do so explicitly. If someone threatens Iran's honor and development, we will face it and strike a blow against him without any other considerations". "We will never organize any war - added Khamenei -, but if others want to impose their will on the country, we will strictly oppose them". "Hatred towards the United States stems from the humiliating behavior of American officials such as their visit to some countries in the region and the inspection of their military bases, without the permission of those countries," stressed Khamenei who also blamed the " enemies, "including the Americans, for fueling the recent unrest in Iran related to rising gas prices.