Iran has vowed harsh retaliation over the US killing of Quds Force commander Maj. Gen. Qassem Soleimani. NATO temporarily suspended all training activities in Iraq due to safety concerns.
Hezbollah-affiliated Al Mayadeen TV says several bases were hit in the attack, which was carried out by unidentified warplanes. Other outlets report that several Iranian nationals were wounded in airstrikes on the Imam Ali base, Iran's flagship project in Syria.
Iraqi parliament to convene emergency session on Saturday dedicated to "decisive decisions that put an end to the US presence inside Iraq."
The son of a poor farmer, the leader of Iran’s elite Quds Force was known as the "living shahid" among Iraqi Shiites for his battle achievements and willingness to put himself in the line of fire.
Soleimani commanded the Quds Force, Iran infamous extraterritorial black-ops arm and was heavily involved in Tehran's operations in Syria. Strike also killed Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis, deputy commander of Iran-backed militias in Iraq known as the Popular Mobilization Forces.
The withdrawal ends a two-day crisis marked by the breach of the largest and one of the most heavily fortified US diplomatic missions in the world.
"If Iran decides to confront a country, we will do that openly, if anyone threatens our nation's interests we will fight back, without any hesitation," supreme leader says after Trump warns of retaliation to riots at US Embassy.
Charging that Iran is "fully responsible" for Tuesday's attack on the US Embassy in Iraq, the US president orders about 750 US soldiers deployed to the Middle East as about 3,000 more prepare for possible deployment in the coming days.
Hundreds of Iraqi protesters chanting "Death to America" and "Death to Israel" break down gates of US Embassy in Baghdad as they attempt to rush the compound to protest recent strike on Iranian-backed militia in the country. Trump blames Iran for "orchestrating" incident.
"Our battle with America and its mercenaries is now open to all possibilities," says spokesman for Iran-backed Hezbollah Brigades. Lebanon's Hezbollah: Those who took the decision to carry out the attack "will soon discover how stupid this criminal decision was."
