After Baghdad airstrike, US Embassy in Pak issues advisory restricting travel of govt personnel

After the US airstrike in Baghdad on President Donald Trump's orders which killed Iran's Quds Force, General Qassem Soleimani, US embassy in Pakistan has issued an advisory putting travel restrictions upon US government employees.

 "Given possible reactions to recent events in Iraq, the US Embassy has restricted travel by US government employees. US government personnel in Pakistan are required to postpone non-essential official movements and most personal movements," the advisory stated.

The advisory also urged the US citizens in Pakistan to "monitor their surroundings" for "possible demonstrations" and "suspicious activity".

On Friday, Iran's most senior commander Qassem Soleimani was killed by the US military at Baghdad airport in an airstrike in Iraq. Pentagon officials in the US later confirmed that the strike was carried out on the command of US President Donald Trump.

"At the direction of the President, the U.S. military has taken decisive defensive action to protect U.S. personnel abroad by killing Qasem Soleimani, the head of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps-Quds Force, a US-designated Foreign Terrorist Organization," a statement by the United States Department of Defense read.

"General Soleimani was actively developing plans to attack American diplomats and service members in Iraq and throughout the region," it added.

Iran's Foreign Minister Javed Zarif on Friday slammed the United States (US) for the assassination of Iran Quds Force chief Qassem Soleimani and said that its "rogue adventurism" is "extremely dangerous and foolish escalation". He also called the assassination an act of "international terrorism" by the US.

Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has also expressed his severe anger over the incident and warned of "severe revenge" for "the criminals who bloodied their foul hands with his (General Soleimani's) blood", and promised that "God willing, his work and his path will not be stopped." President Hassan Rouhani also said that Iran and other "free nations of the region" would avenge "this gruesome crime".  

Following the incident, Iran announced three days of official mourning for the slain commander and summoned the Swiss envoy, who represents the US in Iran.