TEHRAN (Iran News) – Iranian foreign ministry has reacted to the assassination attempt targeting Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi early on Sunday, describing it as a “conspiracy” aimed at disrupting Iraq’s stability and security.
“Condemning the targeting of the Iraqi Prime Minister, Foreign Ministry spokesman Saeed Khatibzadeh stressed the Islamic Republic of Iran’s firm and consistent position in support of stability, security and tranquility in Iraq,” the Iranian foreign ministry said in a statement on Sunday morning.
The statement come after Iraq’s security forces announced that al-Kadhimi survived an exploding drone assassination attempt early on Sunday.
The prime minister confirmed on Twitter that he was safe after the attack. “I was and still am a redemption project for Iraq and the people of Iraq. The missiles of treachery will not discourage the believers and will shake a hair of the stability and determination of our heroic security forces to preserve people’s security, achieve justice, and set the law in place. Thank God, I am fine and among my people. I call for calmness and restraint from all for the sake of Iraq,” he said.
The Iranian foreign ministry spokesman Saeed Khatibzadeh called for vigilance and said there were conspiracies targeting Iraq’s security and prosperity.
“The Iranian foreign ministry spokesman called on everyone to be aware of the conspiracies that have targeted Iraq’s security and development, saying such incidents are in the interests of those who have violated Iraq’s stability, security, independence and territorial integrity over the past 18 years and by creating terrorist and sedition groups, they have sought to achieve their sinister regional goals,” the statement noted.
Expressing satisfaction over the safety of the Iraqi prime minister, Khatibzadeh expressed his hope that the people, the government and the Iraqi political groups would contribute to the development and prosperity of Iraq through unity and solidarity.
The statement was the second Iranian reaction to the developments in Iraq. The first reaction came from the secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, Ali Shamkhani, who attributed the attempt on the Iraqi prime minister’s life to foreign think tanks.
“The attempt for Al-Kadhimi’s terror is a new sedition that must be traced back to foreign think tanks, which have brought nothing but insecurity, discord & instability to oppressed Iraqi people through creation & support of terrorist groups & occupation of this country for years,” Shamkhani said on Twitter.
Al-Khadhimi’s residence in the heavily fortified Green Zone of Baghdad was targeted by three suicide drones, two of which were intercepted and downed by security forces.
Six members of Kadhimi’s personal protection force stationed outside his residence in the Green Zone were wounded, security sources told Reuters. No group immediately claimed responsibility for the attack.
Several influential Iraqi figures and officials reacted to the attack. President Barham Salih condemned the attack as a heinous crime against Iraq. “We cannot accept that Iraq will be dragged into chaos and a coup against its constitutional system,” he said in a tweet.
Images published by Iraqi media outlets showed that parts of the prime minister’s house were damaged, with the house itself littered with rubble resulting from the explosion.
