Update: President Trump ordered the attack that killed Qassem Soleimani and Abu al-Muhandas.
An airstrike has killed Iranian Qods Force commander Qassem Soleimani and another senior Iranian-linked figure in Baghdad, Iraqi state television reported on Thursday, according to the Washington Post.
Soleimani is known for murdering 1,000 U.S. soldiers and Marines.
No one claimed immediate responsibility for the strike, which Iraqi television also said killed Abu Mehdi al-Muhandas, an Iraqi militia commander, near the Iraqi capital’s airport.
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Solelmani is Iran’s most prominent military figure and has deep ties to Iraq’s foreign proxy groups. He had a decisive, focused role in Iraq as the pro-Iranian Shiite militia groups gain prominence and power in Iraq.
It’s no secret that Iran wants control of Iraq.
After the strike, “there were reports of gunfire erupting in the airport vicinity.” The Iraqi Army command reported that three Katyusha rockets exploded nearby. The rockets “are typically fired by Iranian backed militias,” the Washington Post reports.
BAGHDAD AIRPORT
According to Reuters, Iran has fired four rockets into Baghdad Airport. One missile hit a building used by the U.S.-led Coalition; a second hit the military airport’s runway, a third missile hit the Iraqi CTS center, and a fourth one hit the airport’s outside road.
Images from Baghdad Int’l Airport
Credit:@Mustafa_Ahmed91“Interruption of all flights to & from Baghdad International Airport with intense flight of American helicopters around the airport, fearing new attacks,” says @evacool_. pic.twitter.com/yEvYbLdx0B
— Heshmat Alavi (@HeshmatAlavi) January 2, 2020
Another video from Baghdad Int’l Airport
“Two SUVs were directly hit in the road leading in-out the civilian Baghdad International Airport , body parts everywhere according to witnesses on the ground,” says @thestevennabil.
Video: @TheOmarHabeeb pic.twitter.com/LlPzLWJ3b2
— Heshmat Alavi (@HeshmatAlavi) January 2, 2020
SOLEIMANI WAS THE LEADER OF THE PRO-IRAN FORCES IN IRAQ
When pro-Iran militias attacked the U.S. embassy this week, Soleimani was seen as their leader.
What is this anti-American protest in Baghdad about? This picture tells it all. Protesters, presumably from Kata’ib Hizballah, scrawl, “Qassem Soleimani is our leader” on the US embassy wall. Soleimani is the leader of Iran’s Qods Force. He built the Iraqi militias. pic.twitter.com/3iGSGvietx
— Mike (@Doranimated) December 31, 2019
SOLEIMANI KILLED 1,000 OF OUR SOLDIERS
Soleimani helped Shiite militias in Iraq slaughter U.S. soldiers. He sent copper-tiipped IEDs into Iraq, killing more than 500 of our soldiers and Marines in one effort alone, the Daily Beast reported.
Remarkably, he was given sanctions relief by the U.S. under Barack Obama and then Obama gave him a role in overseeing our soldiers during the Mosul operation three years ago.
As a result, the Iranian General became a celebrity in Iran and is the subject of music videos, documentaries, and news reports.
In this clip, Steve Hayes talks about the Mosul deal Obama arranged and says 1,000 troops were killed by Soleimani. He was obviously shocked by the deal that Obama made.
Watch:
Tom Rogan also gives a summary of Soleimani’s history:
“From an explosive campaign that killed hundreds of U.S. soldiers in Iraq, to supporting Bashar Assad’s regime with legions of Shiite fighters and IRGC operatives, to conducting a campaign of bombings and assassinations and intimidation across the world, Soleimani was a master of his very dark arts. He was a serious and continuing threat to U.S. lives and interests. Indeed, Soleimani masterminded a failed 2011 plot to blow up the then-Saudi ambassador and dozens of diners in a Washington, D.C., restaurant.”
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