Qatari foreign minister offers condolences to Iran’s Rouhani for Soleimani death

Qatari Foreign Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman al-Thani offered condolences on Saturday to Iranian President Hassan Rouhani on the killing of the former commander of the Iran Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) Quds Force Qassem Soleimani, the semi-official ISNA news agency reported.

“Qatar understands the deep pain and sadness that the Iranian people and government are enduring in the current situation and we extend our condolences to the Iranian people,” the official IRNA news agency cited al-Thani as saying.

“We did not, at all, expect such a thing to happen, or that such a decision would ever be taken. Such actions are unprecedented, and we are very sad and concerned about this,” the Qatari FM was quoted as saying.

“Qatar will never forget Iran’s support during the difficult times, and we consider ourselves on Iran’s side,” said al-Thani, adding: “We are determined to further develop our relationship with Tehran.”

On the other hand, President Rouhani said that Iran expects its allies to explicitly condemn the US for killing Soleimani.

“The Islamic Republic has never initiated any tension that has led to regional insecurity,” claimed Rouhani, blaming the US’ “irrational” actions for the tension in the region.

“The countries of the region must come to the realization that as long as America is present in the region, the region will not have peace,” he said.

Prior to meeting Rouhani, Al-Thani met with Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif and discussed the killing of Soleimani, the semi-official ISNA news agency said.

The US killed Soleimani in an overnight attack in Baghdad, Iraq, authorized by US President Donald Trump. A senior Trump administration official said Soleimani had been planning imminent attacks on US personnel in the Middle East.

It has been alleged by the Abu Dhabi Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque’s preacher Wassem Yousef that the US drone that killed Soleimani took off from Al Udeid air base in Qatar.