Live Updates: Iran Launches Ballistic Missile Volleys at US Forces in Iraq

Asad air based in Anbar Province, in western Iraq, last month. It was the site of a missile attack by Iran, the Pentagon said.Credit...Nasser Nasser/Associated Press via The New York Times

From The NYT, report updated 5 minutes ago: 

Hossein Soleimani, the editor in chief of Mashregh, the main Revolutionary Guards news website, said that more than 30 ballistic missiles had been fired at the American base at Asad, in Anbar Province, in western Iraq. An American base in Erbil, in northern Iraq, was also attacked. ..."

No casualties reported by the Times, but a Sputnik update  below mentions unknown an unspecified number of casualties among Iraqis at the Asad base.

Sputnik
03:59 08.01.2020 (updated 04:27 08.01.2020)

On Wednesday morning, approximately 35 missiles were launched by Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard (IRGC) striking US targets in Erbil, Iraq and the country's Ayn al-Asad Air Base, which houses US military forces. 

Later, a second series of rockets was launched toward US targets in Iraq, according to Iranian media reports. According to a military source cited by VOA News' Carla Babb, around five rockets have struck Camp Taji - a US coalition base located 27 kilometres north of Baghdad.

Iranian Press TV said IRGC had warned that US regional allies would be attacked if their territories and bases are used by the United States to launch attacks against Iran.

Last week, Iranian general Qasem Soleimani was killed in a US drone strike ordered by US President Donald Trump at the Baghdad International Airport, with his assassination dramatically escalating tensions in the Middle East. In response, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani swore that Tehran would avenge his death.

SPUTNIK UPDATES

• 04:43

  US Federal Aviation Authority Bans Flights Over Persian Gulf Due to Heightened Military Activities

  "Certain flights… are prohibited from operating in the overwater airspace above the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman due to heightened military activities," the FAA said in a notice on Tuesday.
• 04:42

  Ministers Leave White House as Their Talks With Trump Are Over - CNN

• 04:40

  Trump Will Not Deliver Address to Nation on Tuesday Night - CNN

• 04:31

  Israel's Air Force, Air Defence on High Alert Amid the Attacks - Al Arabiya

• • 04:27

    Iran's Supreme Leader Khamenei Arrives at Iranian Operations HQ to Track the Attacks - Reports

    Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei has arrived at the Iranian operations headquarters to coordinate attacks on US facilities in Iraq, MSNBC reports citing Iranian State TV.
  • 04:10

    US Forces in Syria on High Alert, Moving to Base Close to Iraqi Border - Reports

    US Forces in eastern Syrian Deir ez-Zur province are on high alert and started moving to the military base close to the Iraqi border, following the attack, state-run Syria TV reported.

    Syria TV also said that they received information regarding the beginning of an evacuation of US forces from the Al-Omar oil field and the Conoco gas field. US troops are on their way to the military base near Ash Shaddadi town in Hasakah province.
  • • 04:03

      Preparations Underway for Trump to Possibly Address Nation From Oval Office - Reports

      Preparations are underway for US President Donald Trump to address the American people from the Oval Office, CNN reported.
    • 04:02

      Pompeo, Esper Arrive at White House in the Wake of the Attack - Reports

      US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Defence Secretary Mark Esper arrived at the White House in the wake of a missile attack on American forces in Iraq, CNN reported.
    • 04:00

      Casualties Among Iraqis Following the Attack - Reports

      There are casualties among the Iraqis after the Iranian attack on the US Ain Al Asad Airbase in western Iraq, CNN reported on Wednesday, citing a security source.

      No further information is provided on the number of casualties or were the victims killed or wounded.

[END REPORT]

Massive anti-US protests in India's capital to response to Soleimani's murder

Photos: RISHIKESH KUMAR/Sputnik

See the Sputnik report for video footage of the protests. 

Security forces stopped the throngs before they reached the U.S. embassy in New Delhi, but one report is that the embassy was shut as a precaution. Here's the India Today report, posted today at 16:09 IST: 

Red flag anti-US march in Delhi demands revenge for Qassem Soleimani killing

A massive anti-US march was carried out Tuesday in New Delhi in protest of the killing of top Iranian commander Maj. Gen. Qassem Soleimani in a US drone strike in Baghdad, Iraq.

The plan was for the protest march to end outside the US Embassy, but it was stopped halfway by the authorities for security reasons.

The protests were led by prominent Shia cleric Maulana Kalbe Jawad Naqvi, and Mehmood Pracha.

One of the protesters explained the significance of the red flag.

"In ancient times, when tribes would go to war and the leader of one of the tribes was killed then that tribe would raise a red flag declaring war against the killers of their chief. This red flag signifies our demand for revenge against America," he said.

Earlier, the American Embassy issued a demonstration alert’ for its citizens to stay away from the embassy area for their own safety.
[...]
The killing of Qassem Soleimani has evoked protests and demonstrations against the US across the globe, particularly in countries with Shia populations.

With India having a substantial number of Shia community members as its citizens, the MEA is looking at the sensitivity of the increasing tensions between the US and Iran.

This also comes at a time when Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif is due to visit India for the Raisina Dialogue, where he is likely to take the stage and the opportunity to hit out at America. [The dialogue, held from January 14-16, will be attended by foreign ministers from around the world.]

He will also have a separate bilateral meeting with his Indian counterpart, S Jaishankar.

IRAN-US TENSIONS | 'India must reach out to various regional players to ensure restraint'

[END REPORT]

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Unlikely Soleimani was plotting violence against US. Why then was he killed?

The intel that Qassem Soleimani was plotting violence against the U.S. was "razor thin" according to one well-placed American analyst, and everything known about Soleimani's recent actions suggests that he counseled negotiations with the U.S. government.  

I think there was more than one reason that the American president ordered his assassination. But I believe the chief reason is one that isn't spoken about, at least not in public. I believe the president had Soleimani killed chiefly to send a message to all governments that were getting on better terms with Tehran. Such governments, in President Trump's view, were openly defying his authority in international relations, and in doing so were giving clear signs they were wandering off the American reservation while on his watch. 

The list of offenders is quite long; it includes the most powerful European governments, Gulf Sunni Arab ones, and India. Not to mention China and Russia openly flaunting their relationship with Iran with their recent joint naval drills, and Iraq's government often siding with Iran against the U.S.  

Something had to be done to emphasize to all concerned that those who stood against the United States would regret it. Openly murdering Iran's greatest hero was one way to send the message, if one thinks like Mr Trump, who strikes me as obsessed with maintaining face.

As to whether I agree with Elijah Magnier's analysis, which is that fragmentation in the so-called 'Axis of Resistance' led to Soleimani's death -- well, I am in no position to disagree with any single part of his analysis; he is very knowledgeable about the politics of the Levant and Iran, and has good sources. But I would enjoin him to look at the picture from Washington's viewpoint. In any case, I recommend his report because it provides insights on how Soleimani thought.

I also recommend the parts of Bernhard's  January 6 essay for Moon of Alabama where he corrects the record:

[...]

In their descriptions of Qassem Soleimani U.S. media fail to mention that Soleimani and the U.S. fought on the same side. In 2001 Iran supported the U.S. invasion of Afghanistan. It used its good relations with the Hazara Militia and the anti-Taliban Northern Alliance, which both the CIA and Iran had supplied for years, to support the U.S. operation. The Wikipedia entry for the 2001 uprising in Herat lists U.S. General Tommy Franks and General Qassem Soleimani as allied commanders.

In 2015 the U.S. and Iran again collaborated. This time to defeat ISIS in Iraq. During the battle to liberate Tikrit the U.S. air force flew in support of General Soleimani's ground forces. Newsweek reported at that time:

While western nations, including the U.S., were slow to react to ISIS's march across northern Iraq, Soleimani was quick to play a more public role in Tehran's efforts to tackle the terror group. For example, the commander was seen in pictures with militiamen in the northern Iraqi town of Amerli when it was recaptured from ISIS last September.

...
Top U.S. general Martin Dempsey has said that the involvement of Iran in the fight against ISIS in Iraq could be a positive step, as long as the situation does not descend into sectarianism, because of fears surrounding how Shia militias may treat the remaining Sunni population of Tikrit if it is recaptured. The military chief also claimed that almost two thirds of the 30,000 offensive were Iranian-backed militiamen, meaning that without Iranian assistance and Soleimani's guidance, the offensive on Tikrit may not have been possible.

It is deplorable that U.S. media and politicians blame Soleimani for U.S. casualties during the invasion of Iraq. Shia groups caused only 17% of all U.S. casualties and fought, like the Sadr Brigades, without support from Iran. There are also revived claims that Iran provided the Iraqi resistance with Explosive Formed Penetrators used in roadside bombs. But that claim had been proven to be was false more than 12 years ago.

[...] 

********

Israel was not involved in Soleimani's murder

I thought that was likely from the tone of Debkafile's initial report on the incident; now comes verification, although the Israelis might have provided some intelligence to the US on Soleimani's movements, if I recall from the Debkafile report. 

Netanyahu backs away from Soleimani assassination, warns ministers to ‘stay out’ of purely ‘American event’
By Helen Buyniski
January 7. 2020
RT

Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu has reportedly warned his cabinet not to get too involved in the US murder of Iranian General Qassem Soleimani, lest Tel Aviv gets dragged into the escalating conflict between Washington and Tehran.

“The assassination of Soleimani isn't an Israeli event but an American event. We were not involved and should not be dragged into it,” Netanyahu reportedly told his security cabinet during a meeting on Monday, as cited by Israel's Channel 13. He advised ministers to avoid speaking to the media about Thursday's targeted assassination beyond supporting the US right to defend itself, so as not to give the impression that Israel had played any role in it.

The directors of Mossad and military intelligence reassured the ministers that the likelihood of a retaliatory attack is low, since "Israel stayed at a distance from the incident," and that Iran will begin planning its reciprocal move on Tuesday following the conclusion of the national mourning period for Soleimani, according to the same sources.

Netanyahu’s sudden reticence is particularly notable because he has been advocating a US-Iran conflict for much of his political career. For over 20 years, he has insisted that the Islamic republic was just steps away from producing nuclear weapons, even when Israeli intelligence publicly argued otherwise.

The Israeli PM was also front and center in the run-up to the most recent Iraq War, warning the US Congress in 2002 that Saddam Hussein had "weapons of mass destruction" – including pursuing atomic bombs – which turned out not to exist at all.

Just last year, Netanyahu was urging the US and its Middle Eastern allies to take up the cause of war against Iran, emboldened by US President Donald Trump's decision to pull out of the 2015 nuclear deal and re-impose crippling sanctions against Tehran, despite its compliance with the agreement.

However, the overt US killing of a military commander who was apparently very popular in Iran has provoked serious talk of retribution, not just in Tehran, but among the Hezbollah – the Lebanese Shia militia that boasts of fighting Israel to a draw in 2006 – as well.

Netanyahu has had a tough 2019, clinging onto the post of PM in a purely technical mandate after two elections mere months apart delivered a hung Knesset and required an unprecedented third, coming this spring. Talking a tough game against Iran in order to get Israeli votes is one thing, but facing the real possibility of being the target of Iranian missiles is apparently quite another.

[END REPORT]

I think Bibi is less concerned about being targeted by Iranian missiles and more with the response from top European leaders' to what was in effect an American act of war against Iran -- and Iraq -- at a time the Europeans were trying hard to smooth relations with Tehran's leaders.  Bibi needs as much support from the Europeans as he can get right now.  And of course the Europeans don't want their troops in Iraq targeted in revenge for Soleimani's death.

It's rare for RT to give a reporter a byline, by the way. 

********

US SecDef disavows letter saying US forces would quit Iraq

"The letter was signed by a U.S. official on Pentagon letterhead, making it unclear whether it applied to forces from the 76 countries which make up the international coalition. ... An Iraqi defense official confirmed the letter was real and had been delivered."

The (U.K.) Daily Mail has the clearest explanation of the muddle as it stands at this moment:

"BREAKING NEWS: Chaos over U.S. troops in Iraq as Pentagon insists they WON'T withdraw despite general leading anti-ISIS coalition saying they'll move 'out of Iraq' in draft letter released by mistake amid anger over attack that killed Qassem Soleimani

• General in charge of U.S. coalition forces in Iraq tells military counterpart to prepare for helicopter flights as troops pull up stakes
• Letter says troops will soon begin flying out in transport helicopters under cover of darkness
• But defense secretary tells reporters that 'there's been no decision whatsoever to leave Iraq, period'
• Chairman of the joint chief of staff confesses that the letter was a draft released by mistake 
• Donald Trump said Sunday that he would only withdraw troops if Iraq paid the U.S. for building and maintaining the main air base the coalition uses
• He also threatened greater sanctions than those he has imposed on Iran
• Iraq's parliament had passed a resolution, which is nonbinding, urging the government to evict American troops
• That was in response to Trump green-lighting a drone attack on an infamous Iranian military leader while he was in Baghdad, in Iraqi soil  
• U.S. will send six B-52 bombers to the Diego Garcia air base on an island in the Indian Ocean, to prepare for the possibility of military action against Iran

By DAVID MARTOSKO, U.S. POLITICAL EDITOR FOR DAILYMAIL.COM and WIRES

PUBLISHED: 15:39 EST, 6 January 2020 | UPDATED: 17:15 EST, 6 January 2020

Reports Monday that the U.S. would soon withdraw all its forces from Iraq were turned on their heads minutes later when U.S. Defense Secretary Mark Esper told reporters there were no plans to pull up stakes.

'There's been no decision whatsoever to leave Iraq, period,' Esper said, adding that he and his staff were 'trying to figure out' the meaning of a letter signed by a brigadier general that suggested the opposite.

'There are no plans to leave,' he emphasized, suggesting discussion of a massive troop movement could be merely a signal that forces are being repositioned inside Iraq's borders.

Separately, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Mark Milley told reporters that the letter was 'a draft. It was a mistake. It was unsigned. It should not have been released.'

The draft was 'poorly worded' and 'implies withdrawal. That is not what’s happening,' Milley declared.

The U.S. military had appeared to inform Baghdad that it was preparing for 'movement out of Iraq,' a day after the Iraqi parliament urged the government in a non-binding resolution to oust foreign troops.

The head of the Pentagon task force in Iraq, Brigadier General William Seely, sent a draft letter to the head of Iraq's joint operations command.

'Sir, in deference to the sovereignty of the Republic of Iraq, and as requested by the Iraqi Parliament and the Prime Minister, [the coalition] will be repositioning forces over the course of the coming days and weeks to prepare for onward movement,' Seely wrote.  He added: 'We respect your sovereign decision to order our departure.' 

President Donald Trump said Sunday aboard Air Force One that troops would not leave Iraq unless the country compensated the U.S. for the costs associated with building and maintaining military facilities there.

'We have a very extraordinarily expensive air base that's there. It cost billions of dollars to build. Long before my time,' he said. 'We're not leaving unless they pay us back for it.'

Trump also said he would punish Baghdad economically if U.S. troops were evicted. 

'We will charge them sanctions like they've never seen before ever. It'll make Iranian sanctions look somewhat tame,' he warned.  

Yet Iraqi premier Adel Abdel Mahdi met with the U.S. Ambassador Matthew Tueller on Monday, telling him it was 'necessary to work together to withdraw foreign forces from Iraq.' 

On Sunday, Iraq's parliament voted in favor of the Baghdad government rescinding its permission for all foreign troops to remain in the country.

That came in reaction to a U.S. precision drone strike on Baghdad that killed Iranian general Qasem Soleimani and top Iraqi commander Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis, among others.

The resulting chaos has made some in Iraq fear a new civil war, and drew millions to crowd streets in Tehran to see Soleimani's coffin paraded through the city. 

And tensions betweeen Washington and Tehran aren't going away: The U.S. will send six B-52 bombers to the Diego Garcia air base on an island in the Indian Ocean, accordign to CNN, to prepare for the possibility of military action against Iran. 

Gen. Seely wrote on Monday in order to reposition thousands of troops elsewhere, 'Coalition Forces are required to take certain measures to ensure that the movement out of Iraq is conducted in a safe and efficient manner.'

The letter was signed by a U.S. official on Pentagon letterhead, making it unclear whether it applied to forces from the 76 countries which make up the international coalition.

An Iraqi defense official confirmed the letter was real and had been delivered. 

Officials said helicopters would be traveling in and around the Green Zone as part of the preparations.

Reporters could hear helicopters flying low over Baghdad throughout the night on Monday.

Some 5,200 U.S. soldiers are stationed across Iraqi bases to support local troops preventing a resurgence of the ISIS terror group.

They make up the bulk of the broader coalition, invited by the Iraqi government in 2014 to help combat the jihadists. 

[...]

********

Soleimani Was in Baghdad on Mission for Saudi Peace with Iran

Does this explain the gracious, appropriate, and prompt reply from the U.S. military to the Iraqi demand that U.S. troops quit Iraq? I think more than one thing explains the military's open contradiction of their commander-in-chief's bluster but this would probably be a part of it. The Saudis are most assuredly livid about the assassination of Qassem Soleimani while he was on a mission for them. And surely they're justifiably worried that his murder could be blamed on a Saudi betrayal. But if the Saudis are upset, one can imagine how the ranking Iraqi officials feel.  

Iraqi PM says Soleimani was supposed to deliver reply to Saudi message

By Jason Ditz

January 5, 2020

Anti-war (U.S.)

On Thursday night, the US assassinated top Iranian Gen. Qassam Soleimani in a drone strike at Baghdad International Airport. His arrival was actually part of ongoing diplomatic efforts, according to Iraqi PM Adel Abdul-Mahdi.

Soleimani’s visit was related to well-documented Saudi attempts at diplomacy to ease tensions with Iran. The Saudis had dispatched a message of peace to Iran, with Iraq acting as an intermediary. Soleimani was coming to Iraq to deliver the Iranian government’s reply.

The US assassination, then, undercut the peace effort to an enormous level. Iraq was keen to facilitate peace between its two neighbors, hopefully to calm down US threats against Iran. Instead, the US undercut the entire process.

It’s not clear this totally ends the Saudi effort for peace, though it may be difficult for Iran to safely get messengers into Baghdad in the near future, with the US rather openly threatening more assassinations. Since peace overtures were the Saudi “plan B” after the US didn’t attack Iran, they may no longer bother, given the rapidly escalating military tensions.

[END REPORT]

*********

shaking my head

Just saw the above photos from Sputnik's 6/1 video report: Australian Fires Expected to Burn For ‘Months to Come’ as Death Toll Spikes.

See also:

"Hottest place on earth: Temperatures in Sydney suburb soar to 120F as 8,000 koalas perish in the devastating bushfires sweeping across Australia

• Almost half a billion creatures are estimated to have died in the blazes
• Rampaging fires have engulfed almost 12 million acres of bushland in Australia
• 8,000 dead koalas are equal to a third of their population in New South Wales"

By MICHAEL POWELL and RICHARD SEARS IN SYDNEY FOR THE DAILY MAIL

PUBLISHED: 20:48 EST, 4 January 2020 | UPDATED: 02:31 EST, 5 January 2020

[...]

********

US-led Coalition leaving Iraq: Breaking News Updated 2X

UPDATE 2 5:45 PM ET

US SecDef disavows letter saying US forces would quit Iraq

BREAKING NEWS
Sputnik
January 6, 2020
US-Led Coalition Tells Baghdad It Will 'Move Out' of Iraq - Official Letter

[Pundita Note: I can't find the Reuters source story for this Sputnik report -- Reuters may have deleted it, given that the Pentagon hasn't yet verified the letter (see copy of letter below) according to this RT report. My guess is that a source high up in the Iraqi  government showed the letter to journalists who posted a copy at Twitter.
UPDATE 3:50 PM ET: The report is now posted as the Drudge headline, and links to the Reuters report. "The authenticity of the letter, which was addressed to the Iraqi defence ministry's Combined Joint Operations Baghdad, was confirmed to Reuters independently by an Iraqi military source."]  

In a Monday letter to Iraqi military leaders, the US-led coalition in Iraq announced it was preparing to "move out" of the country out of respect for Iraqi sovereignty.

Following approval of a non-binding resolution by Iraq's parliament calling for US forces to leave the country, US Army commanders announced they were drawing up preparatory plans for their departure.

"We respect your sovereign decision to order our departure," the letter says, according to Reuters. US forces will re-position themselves over the coming days and weeks in preparation for the move, the letter states.

The lawmakers' request comes on the heels of a January 3 drone strike at Baghdad International Airport in which US forces killed Iranian Quds Force commander Qassem Soleimani as well as the leader of Iraq's Popular Mobilization Forces, Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis. The two commanders helped lead the fight against Daesh in the 2014-17 Iraqi Civil War that saw the terrorist group expelled from the country. 

At its height, Daesh controlled significant amounts of northern Iraq, including its third-largest city of Mosul, and was advancing on Baghdad.

MORE INFORMATION TO FOLLOW...

Copy of letter via "international correspondent" Yosef Yisrael at Twitter‏. There's at least one other posting of the letter.

********.

Soleimani killed Americans. He killed many more Al Qaeda, Islamic State and Taliban. And he killed American soldiers only when he saw they served what became an evil enterprise in Iraq

Americans can learn the truth about Maj. General Qassem Soleimani from Scott Ritter, a former U.S. Marine Corps intelligence officer and acknowledged expert on U.S. military policies in the present era.

I am taking the liberty of omitting the first three paragraphs in Ritter's op-ed, which I post below, partly because this allows readers to go straight to an outline of Gen. Soleimani's accomplishments, and partly because I disagree with his observation in the opening, which is that "Soleimani is the direct result of America’s irresponsibly aggressive policies." Only to the extent that American aggression was directed at Iran. Ritter himself acknowledges at one point that he "was the manifestation of the logical response of Iran to external threats brought on by the actions of others." Not just American actions. 

And not just direct threats to Iran. Gen. Soleimani was indisputably the world's most effective anti-terrorist commander. He saved the Northern Alliance in their battle against the Taliban. His leadership saved Syria and Iraq from being completely destroyed by terrorist organizations and their foreign backers before Russian and American commands, respectively, entered the conflicts against Islamic State. 

As an American I am ashamed that Scott Ritter had to publish his observations in a Russian media outlet but at least many Americans now read RT -- Russia's answer, along with Sputnik, to Orwellian mainstream media reportage in the USA. 

After his editorial I am posting a report from Russia's state news agency about the Russian defense ministry's formal acknowledgement of Gen. Soleimani's contributions to fighting Islamic State and Al Qaeda in Syria.

The US unwittingly helped create Qassem Soleimani. Then they killed him.

By Scott Ritter

January 3, 2020 

RT

Scott Ritter is a former US Marine Corps intelligence officer. He served in the Soviet Union as an inspector implementing the INF Treaty, in General Schwarzkopf’s staff during the Gulf War, and from 1991-1998 as a UN weapons inspector.

[...]

Making of an enemy hero

Soleimani gained prominence in Iran during the Iranian Revolution and the eight-year war with Iraq, where his leadership, courage and decisiveness caught the attention of senior Iranian leaders including then-President Ali Khamenei. During this time, Soleimani developed the skill-set that would later serve him well as the leader of the Quds Force, the paramilitary organization he helped found in the aftermath of the Iran-Iraq War.

The Quds Force was designed to project Iranian influence through covert means. Soleimani and the Quds Force first came into prominence in 1998, after the Taliban murdered hundreds of Afghan Shi’a and nine Iranians (eight diplomats and a journalist) following the capture of the northern Afghan city of Mazar-i Sharif.

While senior Iranian military leadership advocated a massive punitive expedition into western Afghanistan, Soleimani advised a more constrained response, with his Quds Force providing training and material support to the Northern Alliance, an umbrella group of forces opposed to the Taliban. Soleimani personally directed this effort, transforming the Northern Alliance into an effective fighting force.

After the terrorist attacks of 9/11, the US used the Northern Alliance to establish a foothold in Afghanistan and eventually drive the Taliban from power. Soleimani played a major role behind the scenes helping make the US-Northern Alliance partnership viable, including providing operational and intelligence support.

The US-Iranian cooperation was short-lived; President Bush’s designation of Iran as being part of “an Axis of Evil” caused Iran to terminate its cooperation with the Americans.
Training the anti-US Iraq rebels

The US invasion of Iraq in 2003 created another opportunity for Iranian-American cooperation, which the US promptly fumbled. While Iran had no desire for increased American military presence in the region, it found common cause with the US in removing its archenemy, Saddam Hussein, from power.

The Americans, however, were ill-prepared to cope with the reality of a post-Saddam Iraq, especially one where the majority Shi’a population would demand a major role in determining how Iraq would be governed. When the US started turning its guns on Shi’a forces, Soleimani and his Quds Force took the lead in organizing anti-American resistance in Iraq, leading to increasingly violent clashes that resulted in significant American casualties.

Today, many veterans of the US war in Iraq hold Soleimani personally accountable for the hundreds of American soldiers who lost their lives due to the tactics employed by Iraqi militias trained and equipped by Soleimani’s Quds Force.

Mastermind of Tehran’s regional domination plan

Soleimani did not emerge in a vacuum, but rather was the manifestation of the logical response of Iran to external threats brought on by the actions of others. Iran’s role in Lebanon was defined by Israel’s decision to invade and occupy southern Lebanon in 1982; the creation of the Lebanese Hezbollah movement followed.

Iran’s intervention in Syria likewise came on the heels of a massive intervention by outside powers, including the United States, Turkey and Saudi Arabia, to create a resistance designed to remove Syrian President Bashar al-Assad from power. Soleimani’s actions in directing the Quds Force to organize pro-Assad Shi’a militias in Syria was simply a reaction to this foreign intervention in Syria’s sovereign affairs.

Likewise, when the Islamic State erupted on the scene in 2014, it was Soleimani, at the invitation of the Iraqi government, who helped organize and equip various Shi’a militias under the umbrella of the Popular Mobilization Force. Soleimani went on to direct the PMF in a series of bloody battles that helped turn the tide against the Islamic State well before the US became decisively engaged in the fighting. Soleimani played a defining role in shaping the Middle East in the aftermath of 9/11, positioning Iran to become a major power in the region, if not the major power.

Soleimani’s actions in accomplishing this outcome, however, were not part of a master Iranian plan for regional domination, but rather part and parcel of Iran’s ability to react effectively to the mistakes made by the United States and its allies in implementing policies of aggression in the region.

In the aftermath of the US withdrawal from the Iran Nuclear Agreement in 2018, and the subsequent implementation of the so-called “maximum pressure” campaign of economic sanctions and geo-political containment undertaken by the United States, Soleimani cautioned President Trump against embarking down a path toward confrontation.

“You are aware of our power and capabilities in the region”, Soleimani said in a speech delivered in the summer of 2018. “You know how powerful we are in asymmetrical warfare.”

Soleimani’s statements were prophetic; after the US blocked the sale of Iranian oil, Soleimani’s Quds Force responded by orchestrating a series of deniable attacks on oil tankers in the Strait of Hormuz, and used Houthi proxies in Yemen to launch a devastating attack using armed drones against strategic Saudi oil production facilities.

Recognizing the vulnerability of the US position in Iraq, Soleimani began putting pressure on the Iraqi government to bring an end to the US military presence on Iraqi soil. These activities were underway even before the US bombed the Iraqi Popular Militia Forces last Sunday, setting into motion the events that culminated in Soleimani’s assassination.

Will his death make the world safer?

The reality is that the only thing more dangerous for the US than a world where Qassem Soleimani is living is a one where Qassem Soleimani is dead, murdered on orders of an American President.

Alive, Soleimani would be able to credibly advise patience and caution to an Iranian leadership increasingly pressured by more militant members of the Iranian defense establishment to take a more proactive stance in countering American, Saudi and Israeli policies in the region.

Murdered, Soleimani is transformed into a martyr-hero whose exploits will motivate those who seek to replicate them against an American foe void of the kind of self-constraint and wisdom born of experience.

Far from making the Middle East and the world a safer place to live and work, President Trump’s precipitous assassination of Qassem Soleimani has condemned yet another generation to suffer the tragic consequences of American overreach in the post-9/11 era.

[END]

March 8, 2015: Gen. Soleimani uses a walkie-talkie at the frontline during an offensive against Islamic State in Tal Ksaiba, Iraq

 © Reuters

MOSCOW, January 3. /TASS/. The Russian Defense Ministry has highlighted the contribution of Iranian Revolutionary Guards' Quds Force commander Qasem Soleimani, who was killed in a US strike at Baghdad airport, to combating the Islamic State (IS terrorist group, outlawed in Russia) in Syria.

"Under the direct leadership of Qasem Soleimani, armed resistance against international terrorist groups ISIL (Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, former name of the IS) and Al-Qaeda (outlawed in Russia) was organized in Syria and Iraq long before the so-called international coalition led by the US. His personal contribution to the fight against ISIL on the territory of Syria is undisputed," the Russian Defense Ministry said in a statement published on Friday.

[...]

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Soleimani joins the ranks of immortals

"Soleimani embraced in death by Imam Husayn ibn Ali, the great martyr of Karbala"

Quote and copy of painting are from Charles Cameron's meditation on martyrdom for Zenpundit. (I can't make out the name of the artist.)

It's likely that Qassem Soleimani would've eventually died during a military operation -- it was the kind of death he welcomed.  As such he would've died a hero and a martyr. But death by treachery while he was on the way to a mass funeral to honor the fallen -- now he's an Immortal. 

**********

When the guru likes you he scolds

And if the guru doesn't like you? Then it's, "As you wish."  That's a saying I heard in India, and one I'm coming to live by.     

It has gotten to the point where I have developed a great dislike for many of my fellow Americans so I no longer wish to criticize them because that would imply I hope they will do better.  But I will allow myself this much: 

The United States of America is not Sweden or Israel. This is nothing against either nation and their people but they are not who Americans are, and their countries are fleas in comparison to the United States. So we shouldn't try to imitate them.

********

State Dept advises immediate evacuation US citizens from Iraq

From Debkafile today:

A State Department advisory urges American citizens in Iraq to leave at once in view of the risk they face following the US attack that killed Iran’s top Mid-East commander Gen. Qassem Soleimani in Baghdad early Friday.  In Tehran, supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei summoned an national security conference after Iran’s military issued a statement saying: “Expect a strong response.”

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Goodbye, Mr Trump

We did the best we could with the Christmas decorations

Merry Christmas from Syrian Troops

The pix is from my latest fav site, actually a Twitter page, called ZOKA, manned by someone who obviously has contacts in the Syrian military or maybe is a soldier.  Hat tip to a Moon of Alabama reader writing in response to MoA's December 27 post, Turkey's Military Intervention In Libya Might Help Syria (because Turkey is transferring so many mercenaries patriotic Syrian rebels from Idlib to fight in Libya).  

ZOKA does a lot of reporting on the kinetic aspects of the Syrian war, and now he's also reporting a lot on the Libya situation. The catch is that unless one is proficient in militaryspeak, some of his comments range from indecipherable to hard to follow but I love it that he provides weather reports for Idlib and does his best to keep readers as much up-to-the-minute on Syrian operations as he can.

As to how the operations are going, well, from Al-Masdar News, here's a reasonably comprehensible map of the year's end allover situation; the Syrian government has now regained control of about 70 percent of the country.  

AMN's January 1 report accompanying the map:

BEIRUT, LEBANON (10:30 P.M.) – The Syrian conflict is nearing its ninth year as the Levantine nation continues to experience violent battles in several parts of the country .

While the first half of 2019 witnessed little territorial changes, the Syrian War would see a major shift towards the last three months of the year.

In particular, the Turkish-led military operation, dubbed “Peace Spring”, forced the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) to reach a military cooperation agreement with the Syrian Arab Army (SAA) in order to prevent the militants loyal to Ankara from capturing several border areas.

As a result of this agreement, the Syrian Arab Army entered several areas in northern and northeastern Syria that they have not had a presence in since 2012.

Meanwhile, in the Idlib Governorate, 2019 would see a major shift to this front after the Syrian Armed Forces captured the last militant-held areas inside the Hama Governorate.

The Syrian Army’s capture of Khan Sheikhoun in the Summer of 2019 paved the way for their forces to begin their long-awaited Idlib campain.

This Syrian Army campaign is still ongoing at the moment, as their troops attempt to capture the strategic city of Ma’arat Al-Nu’man, which is located along the Idlib-Hama Highway (M-5 Highway).

[END REPORT]

As of this night, though, AMN, whose glass is always half empty, reports:

Turkish and Syrian armies trade attacks in Idlib as situation worsens

BEIRUT, LEBANON (9:45 P.M.) – The Turkish and Syrian armies have traded attacks in the eastern countryside of the Idlib Governorate today, with both sides firing heavy artillery at one another.

According to a field report from northwest Syria, the Syrian Arab Army (SAA) heavily shelled the eastern countryside of Idlib Governorate, as some of their artillery shells hit the Turkish observation post at Ma’ar Hathat.

In response, the Turkish military fired several artillery shells towards the Syrian Army’s positions near the Jarjanaz front in southeastern Idlib.

The Syrian Army was also attacked from the Turkish military’s observation post in the town of Sarman, which is currently besieged from all sides by the government forces.

Neither side has reported any casualties as of yet.

[END REPORT]

Yesterday FARS reported Syrian Army Heavily Pounds Terrorists’ Military Positions in Eastern Idlib, Militants Retreat.

For more on Turkey's transfer of mercenaries from Idlib to Turkey, see Voltaire Network's December 31 post, Jihadi exodus from Syria to Libya is underway. 

[END REPORT]

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