In a message on Sunday, the senior Iraqi Shiite cleric offered his condolences to Ayatollah Khamenei on the loss of General Soleimani.
Ayatollah Sistani said he was deeply saddened by the news of martyrdom of the highly-revered commander of the IRGC Quds Force.
“The deceased’s exceptional role throughout years of battle against the elements of Daesh (ISIS) in Iraq and the extensive troubles he endured in this path are unforgettable,” Ayatollah Sistani said in the message.
The top Iraqi cleric also expressed his condolences to Ayatollah Khamenei, the family of General Soleimani, the Iranian nation, and to the people of Kerman –the late Iranian general’s hometown.
General Soleimani, the second-in-command of Iraq’s Popular Mobilization Units (PMU) Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis, and a number of their entourage were killed in a strike by American drones near Baghdad International Airport in the early hours of Friday.
The White House and the Pentagon confirmed that the attack was carried out at the direction of US President Donald Trump.
