Ayatollah Khamenei leads Friday prayers in Tehran for first time since 2012

Ayatollah Khamenei leads Friday prayers in Tehran for first time since 2012.

BBC reported that Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei of Iran had led Friday prayers in 2012.

Ayatollah Khamenei leads Friday prayers

The entire world attaches importance to his sermon today because of heightened US Iran tension.

Iranian nation seems to have united after the assassination of Lt Gen Qassem Soleimani in illegal US airstrikes in Baghdad.

Although Iranian retaliatory missiles hit US base in Ain al Assad Iraq, Ayatollah Khamenei termed it a slap.

He downplayed the retaliation as a slap while separating it from the answer that Iran will give in reaction to the assassination.

US President ordered to kill Soleimani 

President Donald Trump had authorized the American military to assassinate Iran’s top general Qasem Soleimani seven months ago.

However, US media also reported that he ordered killing Tehran’s actions led to the death of Americans in the region.

But, Iranian media rejects US government allegations referring to the legitimacy which Soleimani enjoyed in Iraq. They noted Iraq government officially invited him while Iraqi Parliament demanded US withdrawal.

Bolton urged Trump

Meanwhile, NBC News said that then-National Security Adviser John Bolton urged Trump for it. But he wrongly argued it as to retaliate for Iran’s downing of a U.S. drone in June.

Because, Iran itself downed US drone for violating Iranian sovereignty despite several warning.

While citing five current and former senior administration officials, NBC News reported role of Bolton.

It said Bolton urged Trump to approve an operation to kill Soleimani.

Pompeo backed Bolton

Furthermore, the officials also said that Secretary of State Mike Pompeo backed the decision to kill Soleimani at the time.

Trump said that he would only take action if Iran killed an American, a person briefed on the discussion told NBC.

The report brings into question the Trump administration’s justification for killing Soleimani in a drone strike earlier this month after an attack in which a U.S. contractor died.

US administration narrative

Administration officials have claimed that killing of the top Iranian commander was necessary due to an imminent threat of attacks Soleimani was plotting.

Critics of the decision have questioned how imminent the attacks were.

Meanwhile, Democrats widely condemned the attack, and many members of Congress claimed the intelligence did not support the decision, based on information they were briefed on.

“There have been a number of options presented to the president over the course of time,” a senior administration official told NBC.

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