KARACHI -- In the wake of heightened tensions between the U.S. and Iran since American forces killed Iran's top commander General Qasem Soleimani on Jan. 3, Pakistan, Iran's neighbor, has been trying to stay neutral for the sake of its domestic stability, due to its large minority of Shiite Muslims.
Soleimani, a prominent commander in the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, was killed in a U.S. drone strike near Baghdad Airport in Iraq. Soleimani was considered to be the architect of Iran's proxy wars across the Middle East -- Syria and Iraq being notable neighbors. Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei vowed to take revenge for the killing of the general. On Jan. 8, Iran launched a series of missile attacks on two U.S. military bases in Iraq, which were reportedly used in the attack on Soleimani.
