European stocks opened lower on Friday as geopolitical tensions spiked after U.S. airstrikes in Iraq killed a top Iranian military commander.

The pan-European Stoxx 600 slid 0.6% in early trade, travel and leisure stocks falling 1.3% to lead losses as all sectors traded in the red except oil and gas, which surged 0.9% on the back of renewed unrest in the Middle East.

Iranian Major-General Qassim Soleimani, head of Tehran's elite Quds Force, was killed early on Friday by a U.S. airstrike on his convoy at Baghdad airport, the Pentagon has confirmed.

Source : CNBC