Jonathan Marcus
BBC Diplomatic and defence correspondent

Iraq's current political difficulties mean any formal decision on the future of the US presence in the country could be some time away.

But many analysts believe that Washington's position in Iraq is more tenuous than it was a few weeks ago.

It is also important to remember that this episode of direct confrontation was preceded by a long-running Iranian campaign over many years.

So is this crisis over?

This could be the end of one particularly dangerous episode, but the bitter regional tensions and strategic rivalry remain. Soleimani's death is going to cast a shadow over the interactions between the US and Iran for many years to come.

Read more analysis here.

Image source, Reuters

Iran's President Hassan Rouhani has said the overnight missile strike showed the country won't "retreat in the face of America".

In a speech broadcast on Iranian television, he said: "If America has committed a crime... it should know that it will receive a decisive response," AFP news agency reports.

"If they are wise, they won't take any other action at this juncture," he added.

Two Iraqi bases housing US and coalition troops were targeted, one at Al Asad and one in Irbil. About 4,000 US troops are stationed in Iraq as part of a coalition against the Islamic State group.

US President Donald Trump is set to make a statement on the situation with Iran at 11:00 local time (16:00 GMT), according to media reports citing White House officials.

So far, Mr Trump has only addressed Iran's missile attack in a post on Twitter more than 11 hours ago in which he said "all is well".

The leadership of Iraq's semi-autonomous Kurdistan Region, where the targeted Irbil base is located, has released a statement.

It said: "In regards to the recent events, and in particular this morning's, the Kurdistan Region reiterates that military solutions will in no way solve the problems."

"The Kurdistan Region supports de-escalation of the situation and seeks dialogue and diplomatic solutions to the problems. It also seeks stability and peace and urges all parties to refrain from dragging the Kurdistan Region into the rivalries."

Cyprus has accepted a request from the US to station a "rapid response team" on the island, in case American government personnel or civilians need to be evacuated amid the growing tension between the US and Iran.

Cypriot government spokesman Kyriacos Koushos told reporters on Wednesday the request was made through the US embassy in the capital Nicosia.

"It has been a longstanding practice for the Republic of Cyprus to provide facilities for humanitarian operations on the basis of requests from third countries. We will continue to do so as a factor of stability and security in the region", he said.

Nato has said the Iranian missile strikes caused "no casualties" among its forces in Iraq, according to the alliance's assessments.

A statement said: "We are taking all precautions necessary to protect our people, and we are keeping the situation under close review."

BBC Monitoring
The world through its media

Iranian government spokesman Ali Rabiei has assured countries in the Middle East that Iran will not carry out operations against them, according to Iranian government news website Dolat.ir.

"We have no action against any other country, especially the Muslim countries of the region," he was quoted as saying.

"If the United States does not continue its ruthless operations, we can see peace in the region," he added.

Mr Rabiei said he thought the US government would "not engage in any more stupid operations".

Image source, Reuters

A Reuters news agency journalist has photographed people inspecting what they believe is a crater caused by one of the Iranian ballistic missiles on the outskirts of the northern Iraqi city of Dohuk.

Dohuk is about 112km (70 miles) north-west of Irbil air base, which Iran said it had targeted overnight.

Image source, Reuters

Jeremy Bowen
BBC Middle East editor, Baghdad

Image source, Reuters

Iranians cheered in front of TV cameras when they heard about the missile attack. Revenge for the assassination of General Qasem Soleimani has been the talk of the country, and the regime had promised it was coming.

But the night’s work was limited. President Trump’s threats to answer a big attack with an even bigger one were taken seriously.

The Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, told a crowd chanting “death to America” that the attack was a “slap”. Longer term, Iran wanted to force America out of the region, he said.

But it looks as if Iran, after a huge display of national grief and anger, wants to draw a line under this phase of retaliation.

Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif tweeted, in English, that Iran “took & concluded proportionate measures in self-defense under Article 51 of UN Charter”.

The words were chosen carefully. “Concluded” suggested Iran wanted to draw a line under retaliation. “Self-defence’ was a message that Iran, unlike the US, respected international law.

Now the questions are whether supporters of the Iranian regime will consider honour to be satisfied and General Soleimani to be avenged - and what President Trump does next.

CNN correspondent Jake Tapper, citing a Pentagon official, reports that Iran chose targets in Iraq that "would NOT result in loss of life".

Syria foreign ministry has said it has "full solidarity" with Iran.

A statement carried by Syria's SANA news agency affirmed Iran's right to self-defence "in the face of US threats and attacks".

The foreign ministry also blamed the US for the missile strike

“Syria... holds the US regime responsible for all the consequences which are taking place due to its reckless policy and the arrogant mentality which governs its acts,” it said.

Iranian authorities have reportedly recovered the two black boxes from the Boeing 737 that crashed early on Wednesday. But it is not clear what will happen to them next.

The head of Iran's civil aviation organisation was quoted as saying the Ukrainian plane's black box would not be handed over, either to Boeing or the Americans.

Ali Abedzadeh said Iran would lead the investigation but would allow Ukrainian investigators to be present, according to quotes carried on Mehr news agency.

Ukraine's foreign minister tweeted that he had spoken to his Iranian counterpart and had agreed the countries would coordinate their investigations.

Boeing meanwhile has issued a statement on the crash.

"This is a tragic event and our heartfelt thoughts are with the crew, passengers, and their families," it reads.

The company said it was in contact with Ukraine International Airlines and is ready to help "in any way needed."

Iran's attack targeted two Iraqi air bases that housed US and coalition troops.

One was the Al Asad air base, west of Baghdad, which is so vast that after the US invasion in 2003 it had cinemas, swimming pools, fast food restaurants, and two internal bus routes.

The US withdrew from the base a decade ago and it was handed back to the Iraqis. But, as the Islamic State gained control of surrounding Anbar province, the base came under attack.

After the US returned to Iraq to fight IS in 2014 it was secured and rebuilt.

The other base which was attacked was in Irbil, the capital of Iraq's relatively stable Kurdistan region, which the US Army says is home to "more than 3,600 military, external and civilian personnel from 13 different nations".

Find out more about the bases here.

Nato's Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg has condemned Iran's missile attacks and called on the country "to refrain from further violence".

The military alliance remains committed to its training mission in Iraq, he added.

UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson has urged Iran to "pursue urgent de-escalation", as he condemned the country's overnight missile attacks on US bases.

"Iran should not repeat these reckless and dangerous attacks," he told parliament.

He added: "As far as we can tell, there were no casualties sustained by the US and no British personnel were injured in the attacks."

“We are doing everything we can to protect UK interests in the region, with HMS Defender and HMS Montrose operating in an enhanced state of readiness to protect shipping in the Gulf,” he said.

Asked about whether the US drone strike that killed Iran's Qasem Soleimani was illegal, Mr Johnson said the “strict issue of legality is not for the UK to determine since it was not our operation”.

But he said the general played a "baleful" role in the region by arming groups in Syria, Lebanon and Yemen. "That man had the blood of British troop on his hands," he said.

Image source, EPA

Image source, AFP

The leader of a powerful Iran-backed Shia militia in Iraq, Qais al-Khazali, has said it is time for Iraqis to avenge fellow militia chief Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis, who died in the US drone strike that killed Qasem Soleimani.

"The initial Iranian response to the assassination of the martyred commander Soleimani has happened," he said in a tweet. "Now it is time for the initial response to the assassination of the martyred commander Muhandis."

Muhandis effectively led the Popular Mobilisation Forces (PMF) - an umbrella of militias in Iraq dominated by groups aligned with Iran.

The French foreign minister condemns the attacks carried out by Iran and says the most important thing now is to de-escalate tensions.

“France reiterates its solidarity with its allies and partners in the Coalition [against the Islamic State group], as well as its commitment to the sovereignty and security of Iraq," Jean-Yves Le Drian says in a statement.

He adds: "The cycle of violence must end. France, for its part, remains determined to work towards easing tensions.

"We are in contact with all the parties concerned to encourage restraint and responsibility."

A spokesman for Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), Brig-Gen Ramezan Sharif, says the missiles it fired hit "35 points" at the Al Asad air base in Iraq's Anbar province.

"The Americans hastily held an emergency meeting," he told a rally that was broadcast by state TV.

"First, they said [President Donald] Trump would speak. A moment later, they announced the speech was cancelled. He received our message without a doubt," he said.

Not long after the attack, Mr Trump tweeted that "all is well".

"Assessment of casualties & damages taking place now. So far, so good!" he said.

Iran's President Hassan Rouhani says Iran's "final answer" to Soleimani's assassination would be to "kick all US forces out of the region".

Image source, REUTERS

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen says the EU will “spare no effort” to save the Iran nuclear deal and calls for the end of the use of weapons in the region.

Speaking ahead of a meeting with UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson in London, she adds that the UK and the EU should "strengthen and defend" their economic and security interests.

Her comments about the nuclear deal echo those of EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell, who says it is now more important than ever.

Two days after the US killed Iranian general Qasem Soleimani Iran announced that it had abandoned the last limit on its enrichment of uranium imposed by the nuclear deal.