Qassim Soleimani, commander of the Iran’s elite Quds force, whose main objective was to counter Jewish-American policy in the Middle Eastern region conducting extraterritorial military and clandestine operations, was killed on Friday morning by a US airstrike on his car at Iraq’s capital Baghdad airport.
One of the most talented army generals in Iran’s history Soleimani was the mastermind of Teheran’s recent campaigns in Iraq, Syria and Lebanon. His assassination is believed to be more significant than the deaths of Osama Bin Laden or Baghdadi.
For the months, Teheran and Washington have been engaged in provocative measures against each other, but this killing may bring both the countries on the verge of war.
Most of the Muslim nations around the globe are deeply shocked over Soleiman’s killing which will not only facilitate Israel to carry on its geo-political strategy in the region but also make the US a super beneficiary. Besides, Saudi Arabia will feel slight relief. It may be the ‘greatest foreign policy accomplishment of the decade’ for the US.
But what’s true is that US president Donald Trump’s order to kill the Iranian general is an extremely serious and dangerous escalation of conflict in the Middle East. Five persons including Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis, a senior commander in Iraq’s militia, were also killed in the attack.
However, Brigadier General Esmail Ghaani has been appointed to command the Quds Forces, and its programme of operations will be unchanged. Even so, the possibility for direct military action between Iran and US is very thin. The Pentagon has made the strike calculating the probable future dangers.
Teheran most likely would response through its proxies and affiliated groups in Lebanon, Syria and Yemen along with the Persian Gulf.
But there is another big danger. It is widely assumed that Iran may accelerate making a nuclear weapon now, even if it didn’t plan on doing it before, as the republic’s top leaders vowed to take severe revenge of the killing.
Real and immediate is to spread of anti-American actions in many parts of Middle East and elsewhere where Iran has influence. It is also to be seriously taken that Iraq’s sovereignty was breached in executing the killing of the Iranian commander. Whatever it may be – this attack by US will certainly create tension in the entire region.
Ultimately, the people of USA will have to decide how long they want to live with a president who is unstable and also undermining the US influence in the world to help Russia to rise as a global power. We, on our part, warned long ago that president Trump should be seen as a threat to starting a war in the Middle East.
