Iranian man who helped US to kill Gen. Qassem Soleimani to be executed

The Iranian man is accused of passing on information about the whereabouts of top Revolutionary Guards general Qassem Soleimani to the US and Israel. Soleimani was killed in a US drone strike earlier this year.

An Iranian man was sentenced to death on Tuesday for providing intel to the United States and Israel on the location of slain Iranian general Qassem Soleimani.

The man, identified as Mahmoud MM [DPA didn't give his full name… other agencies did], was accused of passing on information about Soleimani's whereabouts to the CIA and the Mossad and that he was paid for this information, a Justice Ministry spokesperson said.

The man will soon be executed, according to state news agency IRNA. The ministry spokesman did not release further details released about Mahmoud MM or how he managed to obtain information about Soleimani's whereabouts.

Officials also did not comment on whether the information provided was linked to Soleimani's killing in Iraq.

Tensions soar after general's death

Soleimani, the head of the Revolutionary Guards' elite Quds Force, was killed in a US drone strike in near Baghdad's airport on January 3 this year.

The killing ratcheted up tensions between Iran and the United States, with Washington blaming Soleimani for being the mastermind behind attacks on US forces in the region.

Iran retaliated with a rocket attack on an Iraqi air base where US forces were stationed, with Iranian forces later mistakenly shooting down a Ukrainian passenger plane that had just taken off from Tehran.

Soleimani's funeral ceremonies prompted a mass outpouring of mourners across the country.

rs/rc (dpa, Reuters, AFP)