INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
Donald Trump has spoken with Boris Johnson to discuss the situation in Iraq and Iran, the White House has said in a statement.The release
offered few details of the specifics of the call on Sunday, noting only that the two leaders "reaffirmed the close alliance between the two
countries."Mr Johnson is expected to brief ministers today on the crisis in the Middle East.On Sunday, Mr Trump insisted that Iranian
cultural sites would be fair game as military targets if Iran carries through on its vow to attack Americans.Image:Thousands gather around a
vehicle carrying the coffin of Qassem SoleimaniAnd he warned Iraq that the US would levy punishing sanctions if it expelled American troops
in retaliation for a US strike in Baghdad that killed top Iranian official Major General Qassem Soleimani.The US leader first suggested the
idea of targeting Iranian cultural sites in a tweet on Saturday.An Iranian government minister denounced Mr Trump as a "terrorist in a suit"
after the US president sent a series of tweets threatening to hit 52 Iranian sites.Speaking to reporters aboard Air Force One on route to
Washington from Florida on Sunday, Mr Trump stood by his comments.He said: "They're allowed to kill our people
They're allowed to torture and maim our people
They're allowed to use roadside bombs and blow up our people
And we're not allowed to touch their cultural sites? It doesn't work that way."Meanwhile, Mr Johnson and his French and German counterparts,
Emmanuel Macron and Angela Merkel, have called for all sides to work towards an urgent easing of tensions in the Persian Gulf.In a
statement, the three leaders said they were concerned by the "negative" role Iran has played in the region, including through forces by
Soleimani, whose killing by the US sparked the crisis.Huge crowds accompany Gen Soleimani's coffinThey said there was now "an urgent need
for de-escalation"."We call on all parties to exercise utmost restraint and responsibility
The current cycle of violence in Iraq must be stopped," the joint statement said."We specifically call on Iran to refrain from further
violent action or proliferation, and urge Iran to reverse all measures inconsistent with the JCPOA (the Iran nuclear deal)."It added: "We
stand ready to continue our engagement with all sides in order to contribute to defuse tensions and restore stability to the region."The
targeted killing of Soleimani sparked outrage in the Middle East, including Iraq, where more than 5,000 troops are still on the ground 17
years after the US invasion.Image:Iranian MPs unanimously chanted 'death to America' in the chamber to protest against Soleimani's
assassination by the USImage:Funeral for victims of US attack on Iranian civilian plane in 1988Iraq is intending to expel foreign troops
following Friday's deadly airstrike in Baghdad.The Iraqi parliament also wants the government to ensure foreign troops do not use its land,
air and waters for any reason.It came after Iraq's foreign ministry denounced the US drone attack as a "blatant" violation of sovereignty
and a breach of the agreement between Iraq and the US-led coalition.Image:Major General Qassem Soleimani was killed in a US airstrikeThe US
has said it is "disappointed" by the vote in Iraq's parliament and urged the country's leaders to consider the importance of the US-Iraq
economic and security relationship, as well as the role of the US-led coalition in defeating Islamic State.Mr Trump said the US would not
leave without being paid for its military investments in Iraq over the years - adding that if the troops do have to withdraw, he would levy
punishing economic penalties on Baghdad."We will charge them sanctions like they've never seen before ever
It'll make Iranian sanctions look somewhat tame," he said."If there's any hostility, that they do anything we think is inappropriate, we are
going to put sanctions on Iraq, very big sanctions on Iraq."We're not leaving until they pay us back for it."Iranian state television
reported that Iran will no longer abide by any limits of the 2015 nuclear deal it signed with the US and other world powers.Mr Trump
withdrew the US from the deal in 2018 and stepped up economic sanctions on Tehran, fuelling hostilities that lead to the Soleimani
killing.In other developments:Two Katyusha rockets have fallen inside Baghdad's green zone, Iraq's military has saidThe military also
confirmed a third rocket fell in the nearby Jadriya areaHundreds of thousands of mourners have flooded the streets of Iran to walk alongside
a coffin carrying the remains of Qassem SoleimaniTehran has announced new steps to distance itself from a 2015 nuclear deal with major
powers - but says this can be reversed if the US lifts sanctionsThe US-led coalition in Iraq is pausing operations in support of Iraqi
forces in the fight against IS militantsA former leader of Iran's Revolutionary Guards has said the Israeli cities of Tel Aviv and Haifa
could be targeted to avenge the death of Maj Gen SoleimaniIraqi President Barham Salih offered his Iranian counterpart his condolences over
the death of the general in a phone callNATO will hold an urgent meeting at ambassador level on the Iraq-Iran crisis on MondayGeneral David
Petraeus, a former director of the CIA, says the killing of Iran's top general is such a significant escalation that it may prompt Tehran to
"give pause"Breaking his silence after returning from holiday in the Caribbean, Boris Johnson has said the UK "will not lament" Maj Gen
Soleimani's deathRepublicans in Congress have generally backed Mr Trump's move to authorise the killing of Soleimani, who has long been seen
as a threat by the US authorities.Image:Mike Pompeo said 'the risk of doing nothing outweighed the risk of taking the action that we took'
in relation to the killing of Soleiman US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo defended targeting Soleimani in Friday morning's airstrike outside
Baghdad airport, telling ABC News the intelligence assessment on Iran's effective second-in-command was "clear".He added that the US will
respond with "lawful strikes" against any retaliatory attacks on American targets.
