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  • Thousands of Iraqis at the funeral procession for Soleimani in Baghdad. The crowd shouts "Death to America"
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January 07, 2020

US forces in the Middle East have been placed on high alert, with Patriot missile batteries ready to fire, fearing possible attacks with Iranian drones, according to an alarm by US intelligence.

This was revealed by CNN, which cites two Pentagon officials, who say "there are indications that we need to monitor threats" even more carefully than has been done so far, a source said. While the other stressed that "all Patriot missile batteries and forces in the area are on high alert" in view of the "threat of an imminent attack".

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo defended Donald Trump as the "right decision" to authorize the killing of Iranian general Qassem Soleimani and said he was convinced that if Tehran makes another bad choice, the president will respond as he has. done last week, "decisively and seriously".

Trump: Use ready to attack if necessary
The United States is ready to respond in the event of retaliation by Tehran after the killing of Iranian general Qassem Soleimani. President Donald Trump assured him during his meeting in the White House with Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis. "We are ready. We are totally ready" and "we will attack in retaliation if necessary," Trump warned, declaring that the killing of Soleimani was a response to Tehran's provocations. "They started with two deaths in no time. Brutally injured people. There had been other attacks before."

They were planning "something big"
With the killing of Soleimani, "we saved many lives," added Trump, signaling that there was an imminent threat to the US. "They were preparing something big that you will hear about or at least some people in Congress know about tomorrow," he explained, echoing what was indicated by senior US officials. Soleimani, continued the White House chief, "was traveling with the chief of Hezbollah. They weren't there to discuss a vacation. They weren't there to go to a nice resort in Baghdad. They were there to discuss their business."

The US president then backed down and announced that he would "respect the law" after threatening to target Iranian cultural sites.

US withdrawal from Iraq would be "the worst thing"
Trump also said that a withdrawal of American troops from Iraq would be the "worst thing" that could happen to that country, highlighting the danger its powerful Iranian neighbor poses. "It would be the worst thing that could happen in Iraq," said Trump. "At some point, we will leave (...) but that moment has not come."

Oceanic crowd for the last farewell to Qassem Soleimani
Oceanic crowd for the arrival of the coffin and the funeral procession preceding the burial of Qassem Soleimani in Kerman, Iran, the hometown of the general killed by a US raid in Baghdad. A human tide, as well as that which participated in the funeral ceremony in Tehran and in the holy city of Qom.

The Iranian authorities were forced to postpone the burial of Soleimani for public security reasons, after at least 50 people died and another 200 were injured in the crowd during the ceremony. The vehicle carrying the coffin of Soleimani and the other victim of the raid to be buried in Kerman, Hossein Pour-Jafarinia, had been stuck in the crowd and had not reached the cemetery. Then the burial ceremony was completed in the afternoon.

Many dead in the crush
An uncontrolled crowding that also had tragic consequences. At least 50 people died in the crush, according to international news sites. The wounded would be at least over 200. LOOK AT THE IMAGES



Threatening slogans
Among the huge mass of people, the red flags of those who ask for revenge for the attack sprout. Many slogans against Trump's United States, but also against Israel and Great Britain. "If the US does not leave the Middle East - it is one of the strongest messages that leak out from Tehran - it will be a new Vietnam for the Americans."

Very high voltage
The ceremonies conclude the three days of mourning for the general proclaimed by the supreme guide of Iran, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Meanwhile, in response to the killing of Soleimani, the Iranian parliament has unanimously approved a motion designating the US military and the Pentagon as "terrorist organizations". The tension is very high. Pentagon chief Mark Esper has denied that there is currently a plan for the withdrawal of American troops from Iraq but the alert remains.

Khamenei: "Iranian forces must strike"
According to Iranian sources heard by the New York Times, the instructions given by Ayatollah Ali Khamenei during the meeting of the Iranian National Security Council, called a few hours after the US raid on Baghdad against Soleimani, are clear. Iran's response to the United States for the killing of General Qasem Soleimani must be "a direct and proportionate attack on American interests" and "clearly carried out by the Iranian forces themselves". The American newspaper recalls that Tehran usually uses its allied forces in the region to launch attacks, but "out of anger triggered by the killing of the military commander, a close ally and a personal friend of the supreme leader, the Ayatollah is willing to put by traditional cautions start. "

13 scenarios for revenge
Iran has so far defined "13 scenarios" for the response to the United States for the killing of General Qasem Soleimani. This was stated by the leader of the Iranian National Security Council, Ali Shamkhani. "Americans need to know that to date we have defined 13 scenarios to take revenge and even if the weaker scenario materializes, it will still be a nightmare for the United States," said Iranian Rear Admiral, quoted by the Iranian news agency Mehr. . "We swear to the Iranian nation that revenge will not be limited to one operation - he added - all the Axis resistance forces will take revenge".

Zarif: the US has denied me a UN visa
"The American secretary of state (Mike Oompeo) said they will not issue a visa for me because they have not had time to do it, but the world is not just New York and therefore I will speak to the American people from Tehran," said the minister of Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif, announcing that the US has denied him a visa to attend a UN Security Council meeting on Thursday, planned since before the crisis these days.

Pompeo: "Iran will not put its hand to the nuclear weapon"
Iran "will not get its hands on the nuclear weapon". This was assured by the American secretary of state, Mike Pompeo, during a press conference. "We hope - he added - that Iran can behave like a normal state" but we "want to secure the United States and stabilize the Middle East region".

"Iran is working to weaken the peace process in Afghanistan," denounced the US secretary of state, pointing the finger at Iran's support for the Taliban. "What worries us," he added, "are the proxy wars fought by Iran in the region."

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo will be in Brussels next week for talks with European counterparts. At the center of the talks, Pompeo himself said at a press conference in Washington, there will be "Iran and Iraq". "This shows strong cooperation with Europeans on issues that affect everyone," said the secretary of state, adding that the topics on the agenda also include "Syria, China and North Korea".

"We don't comment on visa issues." So Mike Pompeo replied to those who asked him about Tehran's complaint that Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif was denied a visa to go to the United Nations in New York. "I cannot add much on the issue -he said again- I will only say this, we always respect our obligations with the UN and the agreements for the headquarters and we will do it also in this particular issue and in general every day".

Parliament increases funds for the Pasdaran
The Iranian Parliament, Majlis, increased the funds available to the Guardians of the Iranian Revolution, the Pasdaran, until March 20, the end of the Persian year. The spokesman for the Tehran Parliament, Ali Larijani, announced this. According to reports from the Irna news agency, Iran's supreme guide, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, ordered that the budget for the Pasdaran be increased by the equivalent of $ 225 million. The measure, Larijani explains, is in line with the intention of carrying out a "hard revenge" against the United States for the killing of General Qassem Soleimani. During the session, the deputies stood up and shouted "Death to the United States" and "No compromise, no surrender. Vengeance. Vendetta '', as reported by Irna.