Iran names Quds Force number 2 to replace slain Soleimani

Following the killing of Qasem Soleimani, the Islamic republic has appointed the new head of the Quds Force vowing to take "vigorous revenge".

Tehran: Iranian supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on Friday appointed Deputy Commander of the Quds Force Esmail Ghaani as the head of the unit after Qasem Soleimani was killed in a US airstrike earlier today in Baghdad.

Tasnim News Agency quoted a statement by Khamenei as saying that the force's programme will remain "unaltered from the time of Ghaani's predecessor".

"Following the martyrdom of glorious General Haj Qasem Soleimani, I name Brigadier General Esmail Ghaani as the commander of the Quds Force of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps," Khamenei said.

Soleimani, a US-designated terrorist, along with six others, were killed in the airstrike carried out by the US near Baghdad's international airport.

The strike has escalated tensions between Washington and Tehran, with the Islamic republic vowing to take a "vigorous revenge" for the killing.