In this picture released by the official website of the office of the Iranian supreme leader, Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei speaks to a group of residents of the city of Qom, in Tehran, Iran, Jan 8, 2020. (OFFICE OF THE IRANIAN SUPREME LEADER VIA AP)

TEHRAN/WASHINGTON/DUBAI/BAGHDAD/BRUSSELS - Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on Wednesday called on the United States to pull its forces out of region, hours after Iran launched missile attacks on two US military bases in Iraq.

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani told the United States that Washington might have "cut off the arm" of General Qassem Soleimani but America's "leg" in the region would be cut off in response, Iran's Fars news agency reported.

Earlier in the day, Iran's foreign minister tweeted that the country is not seeking escalation or war, adding that Tehran would defend itself against any aggression.

Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) confirmed on Wednesday that it has launched a missile attack on the US military base of al-Asad in Iraq's Anbar province following the US drone strike that killed Iranian commander General Qassem Soleimani.

"Tens of surface-to-surface missiles were fired at the strategic airbase," said the IRGC in a statement carried by Iranian state TV.

Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps confirmed that it has launched a missile attack on the US military base of al-Asad in Iraq's Anbar province on Wednesday

Iranian state television said Iran had fired 15 missiles at US targets in Iraq early on Wednesday. The US military said at least two Iraqi facilities hosting US-led coalition personnel were targeted at about 1:30 am Iraq time (2230 GMT on Tuesday). Iraq said 22 missiles were fired.

Iraq's military said that 22 missiles were launched on the al-Asad airbase and a base in the Iraqi Kurdish capital Erbil, causing no casualties. Two of the 17 missiles targeting al-Asad did not go off, it said in a statement. The five on Erbil all targeted coalition headquarters. 

"We used short range missiles ... I hope this will be a memorable lesson for America," Iranian Defense Minister Amir Hatami told state television.

Fars news agency reported that the IRGC targeted US bases in Iraq in the second wave of surface-to-surface missiles. It said that the missiles were probably of Fateh 313 type, and that they were launched from Iran's western Kermanshah province.

Fateh 313 missiles are road-mobile single-stage solid-fueled surface-to-surface missile with a range of 500 km.

Earlier, the Pentagon confirmed that Iran has launched ballistic missiles against US military and coalition forces in Iraq.

"At approximately 5:30 p.m. (EST) on January 7, Iran launched more than a dozen ballistic missiles against U.S. military and coalition forces in Iraq," the Pentagon said in a statement.

"It is clear that these missiles were launched from Iran and targeted at least two Iraqi military bases hosting U.S. military and coalition personnel at Al-Assad & Irbil," the statement reads.

At approximately 5:30 p.m. (EST) on January 7, Iran launched more than a dozen ballistic missiles against U.S. military and coalition forces in Iraq. It is clear that these missiles were launched from Iran and targeted at least two Iraqi military bases hosting U.S. military and coalition personnel at Al-Assad & Irbil.

Pentagon's statement

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The White House said that the United States is monitoring reported rocket attacks on its airbase in Iraq.

"If Iran does anything that they shouldn't be doing, they're going to be suffering the consequences, and very strongly," US President Donald Trump told reporters in the White House.

Trump said that an assessment of the casualties and damage from the Iranian missile strikes was underway and he would make a statement on the situation on Wednesday morning.

"All is well!" Trump said in a post on Twitter.

Iranian state television said 80 "American terrorists" had been killed and US helicopters and military equipment damaged. It did not provide evidence of how it obtained that information. Iraq also said there were no casualties in its forces.

'SLAP ON THE FACE'

"Military action like this is not sufficient. What is important is ending the corrupting presence of America in the region," Iran's Ayatollah said in a televised speech hours after the attack, describing the missile strikes as a "slap on the face" for Washington.

The Iranian supreme leader also ruled out any resumption of talks with Washington on a 2015 nuclear deal. "Talks and sitting for negotiations are the beginning of (U.S.) intervention," he said.

Military action like this is not sufficient. What is important is ending the corrupting presence of America in the region.

Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei

"Iran took & concluded proportionate measures in self-defense under Article 51 of UN Charter targeting base from which cowardly armed attack against our citizens & senior officials were launched. We do not seek escalation or war, but will defend ourselves against any aggression," Iran's Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif tweeted earlier.

Defense Minister Hatami warned that Iran's response to US retaliation to Tehran's missile attacks on American targets in Iraq will be proportional.

A spokesman for Iraqi Prime Minister Adel Abdul Mahdi said that prior to the attack, the PM received a verbal message from Iran saying that Tehran would only target locations where US forces were present but did not specify the locations.

Iran-backed Iraqi militia commander Qais al-Khazali, who leads the Asaib Ahl al-Haq group which the United States has designated a terrorist organization, said in a tweet that Iraq's response will not be lesser than that of Iran's.

The European Commission called for an immediate end to the use of weapons in the Middle East conflict between Iran and the United States, urging efforts to restart dialogue.

READ MORE: Global leaders urge restraint after Iran retaliates against US

The leaders of Iraq's semi-autonomous Kurdistan Region said that the support of a US-led military coalition in fighting Islamic State militants was vital and urged its member states not to allow the group's revival.

Iran has vowed to take a "harsh revenge" for Soleimani's death. 

In the earlier statement carried by Iranian state TV, the IRGC called for a complete withdrawal of US troops from Iraq. 

The IRGC warned regional allies of the United States that they will be attacked if their countries are used for attacks against Iran. 

They also warned the United States that "any new wicked act or more moves and aggressions (against Iran) will bring about more painful and crushing responses."

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