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General Qasem Solemani, head of the Revolutionary Guards Quds Force and long a thorn in America's side, has been killed in a US strike at Baghdad Airport. I can't believe this will not provoke a response. I'm reminded of the time I poked a stick into a wasp nest when I was 6.



https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-50979463

What's left of his vehicle
750 members of 82nd Airborne are already enroute to Kuwait in 7 C-17s
The rest of the 82nd is on notice to move, reportedly.

Iranian TV has confirmed the death

One wonders what a top Iranian was doing in Iraq though. Was he there covertly or was there some official reason for him to be driving by the airport?

I very much doubt if it will have the deterrence effect the US hopes for, and fully expect quite the opposite.

Murder is such a trivial thing nowadays.

llondel you beat me to it for the first part/question. And with the Iraqi government having close relations with the US the presence there becomes even more curious.

For the second point it all depends if he is considered a pawn or a major asset a classification which will impact next moves.

John Hill it seems there is an entire religion very good at accepting and spreading your point.

If you live violently and spread violence and death, you are likely to die violently. I think the expression is : "If you live by the sword you will die by the sword."

That said, I am not a supporter of the USA's overt involvement in such matters.

As a matter of regional credibility the Iranians will need to react but they know that if things go "all in" they will be the losers. Losing their Gulf access would be disastrous yet the maritime and airfield facilities along the coast are virtually defenseless against cruise missiles and stand-off weapons and without access to the Gulf the whole country is worth sod-all. Bandar Abbas would be the first place to go together with its ports and airfields.

Non-attributable terrorism inside the US or at US facilities abroad is the most likely target for reprisal on the basis that everyone would know whodunnit but there are no fingerprints. On the other hand, if they overplay their hand, there are a lot of US hawks just waiting to get the justification they need. You just have to consider how many bonuses there would be for the US in cutting Iran off at the knees and almost no one in the World would object, at least, no one that matters.

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John,

Murder is such a trivial thing nowadays.

I wonder why you added nowadays. Tell me a time when murder has not been a tool of power. The morality is whether murder is justifiable for the greater good but then, of course, the question becomes who's greater good and unfortunately the answer is the one with the biggest stick. T.H.White pictures King Arthur as seeking to reduce the power of "forte main" but realistically and paradoxically he shows Arthur using force to achieve his ends, so it has always been.


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John should know - the Norks are particularly adept at it.

Also strange that nothing is coming out of NZ about Phat Phuck’s inability to keep to an agreement and ramping up the bellicosity, missile production and nuclear weaponry. But I suppose it’s all America’s fault

I expect it is.

boing wrote: ↑

Fri Jan 03, 2020 6:16 am

As a matter of regional credibility the Iranians will need to react but they know that if things go "all in" they will be the losers. Losing their Gulf access would be disastrous yet the maritime and airfield facilities along the coast are virtually defenseless against cruise missiles and stand-off weapons and without access to the Gulf the whole country is worth sod-all. Bandar Abbas would be the first place to go together with its ports and airfields.

Non-attributable terrorism inside the US or at US facilities abroad is the most likely target for reprisal on the basis that everyone would know whodunnit but there are no fingerprints. On the other hand, if they overplay their hand, there are a lot of US hawks just waiting to get the justification they need. You just have to consider how many bonuses there would be for the US in cutting Iran off at the knees and almost no one in the World would object, at least, no one that matters.

Maybe Iran considers its position as too valuable to the World Economy (oil wise) to be harmed.

By the way has any one see any information on how the repairs on the Saudi Oil fields after the drone attacke have been progressing?

This might well herald another load of blood letting.
I feel sad for whoever bleeds next.

One of the last occasions the Iranians took revenge on the USA was PanAm103. Forget Al-Megrahi, he was an innocent patsy.

In theory it’s now too difficult to repeat that attack so it will probably manifest itself in even more wild-eyed hairy-faced zealots rushing around western cities using vehicles, knives, guns and maybe IEDs to terrorise the evil Westerners by slaughtering innocent folk.

That will garner more publicity and stoke more resentment than the equivalent numbers of casualties of servicemen killed on active duty in the sandpit.k

Isn't the homo bellator an interesting phenomenon.
It can't be good, though.

There is discussion on TOP about the death penalty. Surely extra judicial killing, just because you can, is not legal in law. The state of war does not exist between the US and Iran, nor is downtown Bagdad a war zone, or it wasn't last time I looked.

So, one might say - the problem was the US doing it onymously, so to say?
As opposed to downing of some commercial flights or mysterious deaths.

Scroll down to Middle East.

https://www.rt.com/op-ed/477215-woke-br ... aign=Email

Dunno if this event is important enough to lead to a proxy Israeli conflict with Iran, but opportunistic Sandy Arabia might quietly cosy up to it (Israel) militarily so I heard on the Gulf grapevine.

The US Department of Defence said in a statement: "General Soleimani was actively developing plans to attack American diplomats and service members in Iraq and throughout the region.

"General Soleimani and his Quds Force were responsible for the deaths of hundreds of American and coalition service members and the wounding of thousands more."

Well, he won't be doing that anymore, I think that I am with Mr Trump on this. The US has the resources to completely render Iran inert if they continue their destabilisation of the region, it is about time that they became aware of that.

Justification was keeping Americans safe. Agree, but interesting that Americans now being told to vacate the area. Obviously not safe.

OFSO wrote: ↑

Fri Jan 03, 2020 11:20 am

Justification was keeping Americans safe. Agree, but interesting that Americans now being told to vacate the area. Obviously not safe.

And one needs to know how wide this area might be...