Iranian General Qassim Soleimani was killed in an airstrike at Baghdad International Airport.
Following an airstrike that killed top Iranian General Qassim Soleimani, US President Donald Trump Tweeted the following:
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 3, 2020
On Twitter, American reporter Yashar Ali went into detail on what the airstrike could mean:
“1. There are unconfirmed reports that Qasem Soleimani commander of Qods Force (Iran’s external security agency) has been killed in drone strikes. If true, this will be a major moment in US-Iran relations & Supreme Leader will undoubtedly see this as a major provocation/act of war”
https://twitter.com/yashar/status/1212913366492016640
“2. I can’t understate how major this is. Not just a moment in US-Iran relations, but a major global event. People comparing this to killing Osama Bin Laden don’t know what they’re talking about. This is way more significant. Equivalent to another country killing US Vice-President”
https://twitter.com/yashar/status/1212913367712550912
“3. Soleimani is extraordinarily close to the Supreme Leader of Iran. Soleimani reports directly to the Supreme Leader, the Qods force is technically part of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps which also reports to the Supreme Leader.
He is more powerful than Iran’s President”
https://twitter.com/yashar/status/1212913368270376960
“4. If you want to understand how powerful Soleimani is all you have to look to is a text he sent to David Petraeus. This text is an extraordinary (yet unsurprising) display of power. Especially since Iran has an elected president and foreign minister.”
https://twitter.com/yashar/status/1212913368824049664
“5. Qods force & its proxies are responsible for assassinations, terrorism, and unconventional warfare that Iran supports in countries like Iraq, Syria, Lebanon, and Yemen.”
https://twitter.com/yashar/status/1212913369809739778
“6. Qods Force is also responsible for successful and attempted terrorist acts and assassinations in countries like Argentina, the United States, India, and Germany.”
https://twitter.com/yashar/status/1212913370409517056
“7. Watch this clip of Soleimani speaking to understand what his rhetoric is like. He was/is a hardliners hardliner.”
https://twitter.com/yashar/status/1212913371160305664
“8. As I said in the beginning of this thread, Iran’s Supreme Leader is going to see this as a major provocation/act of war. He will respond in a significant manner.
We shouldn’t be surprised to see major cyber attacks against the US as an example”
https://twitter.com/yashar/status/1212913372452098048
“9. We shouldn’t be surprised to see the Supreme Leader order covert operations all over the globe (including, dare I say, in the US) that involve assassinations & other acts of terrorism
We should expect to see the most significant/aggressive response”
https://twitter.com/yashar/status/1212913373005807616
“10. if what I’m expecting sounds alarmist…it’s because this is a major, major event. I’m not interested in getting into whether it was the right or wrong decision but dealing with this plainly, if true, it was a major, major decision.”
https://twitter.com/yashar/status/1212915327673044993
“11. To call Qasem Soleimani just a terrorist is to understate his role significantly and that’s where the danger lies in killing him without a plan for the reaction.
He ordered and directed billions of dollars to organizations that engaged in terrorism. He is/was an evil man”
https://twitter.com/yashar/status/1212919222906417153
“12. But killing Soleimani is not like killing the head of a terrorist org. It’s like killing the head of a terrorist organization and a head of state. You have to treat it as such and the US has not DIRECTLY engaged in assassinations on that level in decades.”
https://twitter.com/yashar/status/1212919223422308352
Trump’s approach to Iran is a stark contrast from that of the Obama Administration, which at one point even sent money directly to Iran.
Tensions in the region are expected to increase dramatically.
Spencer Fernando
Photo – Twitter
