TEHRAN -- The head of the Quds Force of the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) has called on all Iraqi sides to respect the results of last month’s parliamentary elections, Iranian Ambassador to Baghdad Iraj Masjedi says.
In an interview with Iran’s Arabic-language Al-Alam News Network, Masjedi said General Ismail Qa’ani’s asked Iraqi leaders to exercise restraint during his surprise visit to Baghdad on Monday.
“During his meetings, General Qa’ani stressed the need to respect the election results, which will be announced by Iraq’s Independent High Electoral Commission and official institutions,” Masjedi said.
“General Qa’ani called on the Iraqi authorities to address electoral complaints within the framework of the law.”
He said the Quds Force chief had expressed Iran’s support for the legal process of the elections and urged Iraqi protesters to cooperate with each other after the announcement of the final results.
Last week, tensions rose in Iraq as security forces in Baghdad attacked protesters demanding a manual recount of the votes cast in the October 10 elections.
According to the Iraqi Ministry of Health and Environmental, 125 people were injured during the clashes. Some reports said up to three people were killed in the violence.
A day after the clashes, Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhemi survived an “assassination” attempt in which an explosive-packed drone hit his residence in Baghdad.
Qa’ani traveled to Baghdad then and met with Prime Minister Kadhimi, President Barham Salih, a number of Iraqi ministers and other high-ranking political officials and dignitaries.
In his meetings, Qa’ani condemned the attack on the Iraqi premier’s residence and stressed the importance of a thorough, comprehensive and technical investigation into the incident.
Any party whose involvement in the attack is proven should be brought to justice based on Iraqi law, the commander said.
The Quds Force commander also stressed the need to maintain stability and unity in Iraq, Masjedi said.
Some Iraqi groups have said all indications suggest that the United States has a hand in the botched assassination attempt against Prime Minister Kadhimi. Sheikh Ali al-Asadi, the head of the political council of the Iraqi resistance movement, on Monday called the attack an attempt to plunge Iraq
into an abyss of internal strife, which could have dangerous consequences.
“All evidence and signs indicate that the American embassy is involved in the incident,” he added, noting that the diplomatic mission did not take any measures in order to repel the attack despite the fact that it is equipped with a C-RAM air defense system.
Asadi and several other Iraqi figures have called for the formation of impartial committees to help identify and prosecute those responsible for the failed attempt to prevent manipulation of criminal evidence.
The Iraqi Joint Operations Command has raised questions about the deactivation of the U.S. military’s C-RAM systems used to detect and destroy incoming rockets and flying objects.
“We are currently discussing the matter with the American side and officials from the U.S. embassy. This is an issue that experts should throw light on and explain,” its spokesman Major General Tahsin al-Khafaji said last Sunday.