Iranian Ambassador To Iraq Iraj Masjedi: Iranian Missile Attack On Erbil Was In Retaliation For Israeli Strike In Kermanshah; We Support Iraq's Sovereignty But If The U.S. And Israel Carry Out Attacks Against Us From Iraqi Soil – What Are We Expected To Do?

Iranian ambassador to Iraq Iraj Masjedi said that Iran "completely supports Iraq's security and sovereignty" but if the U.S. and Israel attack Iran, it should not be expected to sit idly by on in an interview that aired on Al-Sharqiya News TV (Iraq) on April 14, 2022. Masjedi said that the Israelis undermine Iran's security from within the Kurdistan Region and that they carried out an attack against an IRGC base in Kermanshah, Iran from within the region, and this is the reason Iran attacked Erbil in retaliation. He added that Iran attacked the Ayn Al Asad airbase in Iraq only because of the American assassination of IRGC Qods Force commander Soleimani on Iraqi soil. According to various reports, Iraj Masjedi is being replaced.

Iraj Masjedi: "We feel that the Kurdistan Regional Government does not take our security concerns seriously. The Israelis undermine our security [from] within the Kurdistan Region. The reason for the [IRGC's Erbil missile] attack was an operation carried out by the Israelis from within the Kurdistan Region against an IRGC base in Kermanshah, in Iran. The attack [in Erbil] was retaliation by the Islamic Republic. Otherwise, Iran does not want to have any problems with the Kurdistan Region.

"Let me give you another example – the attack on Ayn Al-Asad airbase [following] the martyrdom of Hajj Qasem Soleimani. Why did we target the Ayn Al-Asad airbase? Because the Americans assassinated our commander. This assassination took place in this country. We do not consider the Iraqi government responsible for that assassination. We consider the U.S. government and President Trump responsible. After the assassination, we retaliated by targeting the Ayn Al-Asad airbase. The Islamic Republic of Iran completely supports Iraq's security and sovereignty, but if the U.S. forces carry out attacks against us from Iraqi soil, or if the Israeli forces or the anti-revolutionary forces do this – I am asking you what should the Islamic Republic of Iran do. Should the Islamic Republic just stand idly by?"