World News Roundup: U.S. killing of Iran's second most powerful man; Soleimani was Iran's celebrity soldier and more

Following is a summary of current world news briefs.

U.S. killing of Iran's second most powerful man risks regional conflagration

The U.S. killing of Qassem Soleimani, Iran's most powerful figure after its supreme leader, is seen by Tehran as an act of war that risks regional conflagration. By ordering Friday's airstrike on the commander of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard's foreign legions, President Donald Trump has taken the United States and its allies into uncharted territory in its confrontation with Iran and its proxy militias across the region.

Soleimani was Iran's celebrity soldier, spearhead in Middle East

Iranian Major-General Qassem Soleimani, the top commander of the elite Quds Force of the Revolutionary Guards, helped Iran fight proxy wars across the Middle East by inspiring militias on the battlefield and negotiating with political leaders. His death on Friday in a U.S. airstrike on his convoy at Baghdad airport marked the end of a man who was a celebrity at home and closely watched by the United States, Israel and Tehran's regional rival Saudi Arabia.

Flights suspended in Libya's capital as violence intensifies

Flights were suspended at the only functioning airport in Libya's capital Tripoli on Friday because of rocket fire and shelling, as people in eastern Libya protested Turkish military support for their rivals. Turkey's parliament voted on Thursday to allow troops to be sent to support the internationally-recognized Government of National Accord (GNA) in Tripoli, deepening fears of more fighting, though analysts and officials said Ankara was unlikely to immediately put boots on the ground.

U.S. airstrike targets Iraqi militia north of Baghdad: state TV

A United States airstrike targeted an Iraqi militia late on Friday on Taji road north of Baghdad, state TV said. It did not name the militia or provide further details. Airstrikes targeting Iraq's Popular Mobilization Forces umbrella grouping of Iran-backed Shi'ite militias near camp Taji north of Baghdad have killed six people and critically wounded three, an Iraqi army source told Reuters late on Friday.

U.S. Democratic contenders condemn Iran strike, warn of war

Democratic presidential contenders on Friday condemned the airstrike that killed Iranian military commander Qassem Soleimani, saying President Donald Trump's decision was reckless and could lead the United States to another war in the Middle East. "President Trump just tossed a stick of dynamite into a tinderbox," said former Vice President Joe Biden. His campaign released a 30-second online ad that portrayed Biden as "tested and trusted around the world" against Trump's "erratic, unstable" presidency.

Trump says Soleimani plotted 'imminent' attacks, but critics question just how soon

After President Donald Trump said the top Iranian general killed in a U.S. airstrike in Baghdad was plotting "imminent" attacks on U.S. interests, some U.S. national security and congressional officials are raising questions about the use of that word to justify the killing. Senator Mark Warner, the Democrat who serves as Vice-Chair of the Senate Intelligence Committee, told Reuters on Friday after a briefing: "I believe there was a threat, but the question of how imminent is still one I want to be answered."

U.S. deportations of Guatemalans doubled over past decade

U.S. President Donald Trump's administration stepped up deportations of Guatemalans in 2019, doubling the number of migrants sent back from the United States a decade earlier, data from the Central American country showed on Friday. Trump has made cracking down on illegal immigration a major policy focus and has continued to press the issue in the run-up to the November U.S. presidential election.

Four generations of UK royal family pose for photo to mark new decade

Buckingham Palace has issued a new photographic portrait of Queen Elizabeth, her son Prince Charles, her grandson Prince William and her great-grandson Prince George to mark the start of a new decade. This is only the second time a portrait of the queen and the three future monarchs has been released, according to the palace.

U.S. says 'terminated' top Iran general to thwart attack on Americans

Iran promised vengeance after a U.S. airstrike in Baghdad on Friday killed Qassem Soleimani, Tehran's most prominent military commander and the architect of its growing influence in the Middle East. Soleimani, a 62-year-old general who headed the overseas arm of the Revolutionary Guards, was regarded as the second most powerful figure after Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

Ghosn used our jets illegally in escape from Japan, Turkish company says

A Turkish private jet operator said on Friday that ex-Nissan boss Carlos Ghosn used two of its planes illegally in his escape from Japan, with an employee falsifying lease records to exclude his name from the documents. MNG Jet said it had filed a criminal complaint about the incident, a day after Turkish police detained seven people, including four pilots, as part of an investigation into Ghosn's passage through Istanbul en route to Lebanon.