U.S. Secretary of State, Mike Pompeo,  said on Sunday that there was “no scepticism” among senior U.S. leaders about the intelligence behind the decision to kill a top Iranian general, and that any target the U.S. may strike in Iran would be “lawful”.

“The intelligence assessment made clear that no action allowing Soleimani to continue his plotting and his planning – his terror campaign – created more risk than taking the action that we took last week,” Pompeo said.

The top U.S. diplomat was defending President Donald Trump’s order to kill Qassem Soleimani, the powerful commander of Iran’s elite Quds Force, on broadcaster ABC.

Trump said on Friday that Soleimani “was plotting imminent and sinister attacks” against U.S. personnel in the region, but did not reveal specific threats.

While critics question the legality and consequences of the attack, which sharply increased tensions in the region, Pompeo insisted that “the world is a safer place” following Soleimani’s death.

“This was a bad guy. We took him off the playing field; and that’s important because this was a fellow who was the glue, who was conducting active plotting against the United States of America,” Pompeo said.

Asked if congressional authorization would be sought for future actions against Iran, Pompeo said the administration had the authority it needed for its moves so far and would continue to do things “appropriately, lawfully and constitutionally.”

Pompeo was also asked about Trump’s Saturday warning that if Tehran carries out its promised “harsh revenge”, the U.S. would target 52 sites in the Islamic Republic.

The tweet raised concerns because targeting cultural sites is mostly prohibited under international laws of armed conflict.

“Every target that we strike will be a lawful target,” Pompeo answered.