The Islamic Centre of England in Maida Vale, Kilburn, London, has held a mass memorial for slain Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps general Qasem Soleimani.
Soleimani, who as leader of the Quds Force of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) had been held responsible for directing the activities of Iran’s proxy militias and other assets in Iraq, Syria, and elsewhere, and for fomenting the recent siege of the U.S. embassy in Baghdad.
Consequently, he was eliminated by a U.S. drone strike ordered by President Donald Trump, along with Kataib Hezbollah founder Abu Mahdi Al-Muhandis.
The Iranian, described as the “Osama bin Laden of the Shiite world” by Aaron Klein, was described as an “honourable Islamic commander” by Islamic Centre of England director Seyed Hashem Moosavi in an official message of condolence.
The message of condolence praised Soleimani as a man “consistently present on the battlefield with the devils and the diabolic powers of the world” who “did not stop his struggle for one moment”.
“May God bless Haj Ghasem!” it declared.
“On the occasion of his martyrdom and that of his entourage, especially the great mujahid of Islam the honourable Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis, I offer my condolences and my congratulations to the Imam al-Mahdi (a). I also extend my condolences to the great leader of Iran, Aytollah Khamenei, to the family members of the martyrs, and to the admirable nations of Iran and Iraq,” it concluded, with the director signing off as the “Representative of Ayatollah al- Uzma Sayyid Ali Khamenei (May Allah give him long life)”.
Mourners “squeezed” into the Islamic Centre to attend the memorial for Soleimani and his entourage, according to a MailOnline report, accompanied by pictures of large crowds gathered both within and without the building and and an officiant standing behind a portrait of the commander and Al-Muhandis.
Breitbart London reported on Saturday that the Muslim population of England surpassed three million in 2016, greater than the total populations of Wales and Northern Ireland — although most adhere to Sunni sects of Islam, while the Islamic Republic of Iran is Shiite.
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