Paramilitary chief says time for 'Iraqi response' to US drone strike

A top commander in Iraq's Hashed al-Shaabi paramilitary network said Wednesday it was time for an "Iraqi response" to a US drone strike that killed the network's deputy chief.

"That response will be no less than the size of the Iranian response. That is a promise," Qais al-Khazali, a hardline Hashed commander, threatened in a tweet.

Iran launched missiles at Iraqi bases housing US troops early Wednesday in retaliation for last week's US drone strike that killed senior Iranian commander Qasem Soleimani and Hashed deputy chief Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis.