Tehran: Qatar offered a $3 billion ‘bribe’ to Tehran to avoid a retaliatory attack following the assassination of a top Iran military commander, it has emerged.
A former Iran Revolutionary Guards Corps member, Hussain Abbasi, revealed the “deal” during a speech at a mosque in Nowshahr, a city north of Iran.
According to him, the drone that killed Iranian Quds Force commander Qassem Soleimani was launched from Qatari territory – and the Qataris flocked to Tehran immediately to offer an apology.
The GDN earlier reported that Qatari Amir Shaikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani recently visited Iran and vowed to offer the Islamic Republic $3bn.
“The money was offered so that Iran would not launch a strike against Doha in retaliation for the assassination of Soleimani,” Mr Abbasi said.
Suleimani was killed in a US drone strike near Baghdad International Airport on January 3. The strike also killed another key figure Abu Mahdi Al Muhandis, who had travelled to the airport to meet Soleimani.
In response, Iran fired missiles at the US base in Iraq during which one of the missiles downed an Ukrainian passenger aircraft.
All 176 people on board died.
“The US Central Command is based in Qatar and it was General Kenneth McKenzie who handled the strike on Soleimani,” said Mr Abbasi.
“If Iran wanted to respond to Americans in that area, it would have been a disaster,” he said.
“Therefore, the Qataris decided to pay $3bn as compensation for the downed Ukrainian plane, insurance expenses for its passengers and everything”.
The former IRGC member described the Amir’s visit as a “plea.”
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