Behind the official yet dubious justifications for the U.S. airstrike that killed a top Iranian general on Friday lies a confluence of factors — some decades in the making, others more recent — that are pushing the U.S. towards yet another catastrophic war in the Middle East.The recent assassination of Iran's most popular and well-known general, Qassem Soleimani, has stoked fears that a new war pitting the U.S. and its allies against Iran could soon become a devastating and deadly reality. The airstrike that killed Soleimani, conducted by the U.S. in Baghdad, was conducted without the authorization or even prior notification of the U.S. Congress and without the approval of Iraq's government or military, making the attack flagrantly illegal on multiple levels. The attack also killed Iraqi militia commander Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis, who was an advisor to Soleimani.
"The assassination of an Iraqi military commander who holds an official position is considered aggression on Iraq ... and the liquidation of leading Iraqi figures or those from a brotherly country on Iraqi soil is a massive breach of sovereignty," Iraq's Prime Minister Adel Abdul Mahdi said of the attack, adding that the assassination was "a dangerous escalation that will light the fuse of a destructive war in Iraq, the region, and the world."
Notably, the assassination of Soleimani comes just a few months after an alleged Israeli attempt to kill the Iranian general failed and amid a well-documented and decades-long push by U.S. neoconservatives and Israeli officials for a U.S.-led war with Iran.
While the illegality of the assassination has been noted by many since news of the attack first spread, less attention has been given to the oddities of the Trump administration's official reasoning and justification for the attack that has brought with it renewed tension to the Middle East. Per administration officials, the attack was aimed at "deterring future Iranian attack plans" as well as a response to a rocket attack at the K1 military base near Kirkuk, Iraq on December 27. That attack killed one U.S. military contractor and lightly wounded several U.S. soldiers and Iraqi military personnel.
Yet, the details of that attack — even per mainstream U.S. sources that often support U.S. militarism — are incredibly murky, and the name of the American killed and the identity of the company he or she was working for have not been released. Some media reports have referred to the contractor as a "Pentagon contractor" while others have used the term "civilian contractor," leading some to speculate that the contractor might have been a private mercenary in the employ of the Pentagon.
In addition, no group has yet claimed responsibility for the attack and media reports have noted that the attack could just as easily have been conducted by remnants of the Islamic State as by the Iraqi Shia militia (Kataib Hezbollah) that was officially blamed by U.S. officials. An official investigation into the incident, being conducted by the Iraqi military, has yet to be concluded. Notably, the U.S. previously claimed it had compelling evidence to blame Iran for attacks on oil tankers in the Gulf of Oman last June, only to have staunch U.S. allies in the region claim that alleged U.S. evidence of Iranian involvement was insufficient.
Furthermore, the U.S. had already responded to the death of the contractor, launching five different attacks in Iraq and Syria in late December, killing an estimated 25 and motivating Iraqi protesters to storm the U.S. embassy in Baghdad as many of those killed by those airstrikes were Iraqis. The subsequent airstrike that killed Soleimani seems like overkill for the official justification of avenging the death of one American.
Given the above, the question then becomes — is the Trump administration basing its assassination of a top Iranian general in Iraqi sovereign territory in clear violation of international law on the death of a single individual that the government will not even name? Even when five strikes were already launched to allegedly avenge that same individual?
Risking a regional war to allegedly avenge the death of an individual who was already avenged raises questions, especially for a President standing for re-election. The United States claims that the assassination was also intended to act as a "deterrent" against potential, future Iranian attacks, yet it is hard to justify the murder of a top general of a foreign power on foreign soil as a preemptive and preventative measure as opposed to one that would invite escalation. This is particularly true given that those that have most often sought an escalation in tensions between Iran and the U.S. and its Middle Eastern allies do not live in Tehran and Baghdad, but instead in Washington D.C. and Tel Aviv.
Failed assassination plots and domestic woes
Much has been written by MintPress and other outlets about the long-standing efforts by prominent neoconservatives in the U.S. as well as the Israel lobby and Israeli government to prod the U.S. into a major war with Iran. Neoconservative efforts at regime change in Iran have been decades in the making and the current presidential administration has several notable Iran hawks in prominent positions. Furthermore, both President Trump and his foremost ally in the Middle East, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, are facing domestic efforts aimed at removing them from office and are facing fresh elections, giving both leaders incentive to ratchet up tensions abroad to distract from their own domestic conflicts.
Yet, the current pressure facing both Trump and Netanyahu in their respective policies is only the latest factor that has pushed both administrations into a renewed and increasingly desperate push to satisfy the decades-old effort of Iran hawks in both countries to stoke war and "reshape" the Middle East in favor of the U.S.-Israel axis.
Given the recent assassination of Soleimani, however, it is essential to point out that the U.S. airstrike targeting the Quds Force leader came just a few months after Israel tried but failed to assassinate the general. Indeed, the most recent of these failed attempts was slated to occur early last October and, per The Times of Israel,
"The assassins planned to dig under a religious site associated with Soleimani's father and set off an explosion under the building when he was inside, and then try to deflect blame so that it ignited an interfaction[al] religious war. The assassins prepared some 500 kilograms to use for the bomb."Israel's government did not comment on the alleged plot, though it is notable that the plan to dig below a Muslim holy site and plant a bomb has been attempted by Israeli extremist groups in the past, groups which have a major foothold in Israel's current government.
Comment: Some were successful. Numerous religious sites were blown up during religious events during the Iraq War, which turned a national insurgency against US occupation into a brutal sectarian war.
This alleged attempt by Israel to kill Soleimani came after claims that, in 2018, the Trump administration had given Israel a "green light" to assassinate the general. The report claimed that "there is an American-Israeli agreement" that Soleimani is a "threat to the two countries' interests in the region" and was published by the Kuwaiti newspaper Al-Jarida, which is widely considered to be "an Israeli platform for conveying messages to other countries in the Middle East," according to Israeli media.
Israel may have planned to assassinate the general as a means of provoking war with Iran, which Netanyahu was actively promoting last February. At the time, Newsweek reported that "Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has expressed his desire to go to war with Iran, and said he was meeting with dozens of foreign envoys, including those from the Arab world, in order to push the initiative forward." Yet, with Israel's closest ally having done the deed, Israel has kept relatively quiet about the incident, though Iranian officials have claimed that the assassination of Soleimani was jointly conducted by the U.S. and Israel.
Though the official yet dubious justifications for the strike have been given, the most likely result of the death of Soleimani is that it will "light the fuse of war," as recently stated by Iraq's Prime Minister. Whether Soleimani's death alone will be enough to push the U.S., Iran and their respective allies to war remains to be seen, but what is certain is that the Trump administration seems content to continue to escalate the situation in pursuit of both long-standing ambitions of career war hawks as well as a release for quickly building domestic pressure ahead of the 2020 election.
About the author
Whitney Webb is a MintPress News journalist based in Chile. She has contributed to several independent media outlets including Global Research, EcoWatch, the Ron Paul Institute and 21st Century Wire, among others. She has made several radio and television appearances and is the 2019 winner of the Serena Shim Award for Uncompromised Integrity in Journalism.
Reader Comments
The U.S. government's claim to 'pre-emptively' attack/assassinate people - and that because "AmeriKa" is 'exceptiional'* - is painfully illogical and uncoincidentally unconstitutional, given our logical Constitution.
R.C.
Isn't that 'special'? SNL Church Lady. [Link]
RC
I wonder just HOW many of those treaties we've been a'breaking in Iraq these past 17! years.
I dare say our theft of Syria's oil is likewise listed.
And remember what's gonna happen if/when Americans get captured. (I can't see any calling in a strike on themselves as that russian Spec. Ops Soldier did.)*
R.C.
*Hey, I've got a grreat idea? All troops in the field will be preloaded with remotely controlled cyanide pills. That'd be the (current) AmeriKan way. (Sarcasm.)
RC
Some housecleaning needs to be done before your country can operate with the democracy you describe.
Communities sign off on this as it fills up an empty garage, and the cops get to stash the bits and pieces families left-over from a generational asset fleecing. The community feels good about the 'business', and patronizes the work shop. All is wonderful EXCEPT that is not what actually happened.
What actually occurred was an intended acquisition of a middle aged body man's assets ---a self built home--with room for a hobby garage, who then is forced to struggle to survive anew. The community looks away from the crisis they created, while the cops create a 'straw person' to justify the acquisition of the retirement home. The people selected for this aren't 'bad', actually they are more trusting and naive surprised at the hypnotically-placed remarks they hear from their mouths.
Don't blame the cops; they are just using what the society allows. Where is the protections against hypnotic abuse and coercion? Do you hide for 25 years because no one can be trusted not to abuse you?
Do you give up community participation because you fear saying or doing something that can be turned against you? Afraid of creating animosity that will harm your children or grandchildren? Knowing the legal system will be used to pin you in place while stresses accumulate? With the result 20 years later of a settlement going to pay for your hospital bills, legal fees, and the past due child support for the grandchildren? Or do you live isolated and lonely until you die knowing your community participation you thought was honest was discarded so another family could live the middle class life your husband thought he earned for his family?
Do yah think they'll aim ONLY at the drone NEXT Time? Naw.
R.C.
from the article --> " ...without the authorization or even prior notification of the U.S. Congress".
This is completely incorrect, and this ignorance is our biggest problem.
The USA Congress declared war against potential future terrorists with Public Law 107-40*, which is still a valid law and has been used as justification about 50 times for killing, so far.
Oh, look at today's news -- The Pentagon confirmed U.S. responsibility for the strike, claiming it “was aimed at deterring future Iranian attack plans”.---- as in, preventing future terrorism.
The USA military is fighting this war, whether or not (and preferably not) you understand what is going on.
* modeled after the Reichstag Fire Decree of 1933 which gave away all German civil liberties and other important things so that the Nazis could concentrate on preventing "state-endangering acts of violence".-- Future terrorism.
I've been saying this for almost 2 decades. Does anybody hear this, yet?
Public Law 107-40 must be your target, this election year -- if you want to stop this ignorance, this insanity. imho, of course.
yours truly,
locust - literally one computer user stubbornly typing
We are all stuck in the DAFT war, the Defense against Future Terrorism war. If we all co-operate, we might be able to stop it.
Unless you're a complete idiot this fighting and retaliation by the US against Iran will be totally unpopular. I'm American, a Texan and the days of the US harming other countries (Afghanistan, Iraq, Libya, Syria, Yemen, etc) needs to come to an end.
Who was in power during the Syrian war supporting Al-Qaeda etc against Syria and Iran?
Trump, US geopolitical objectives, or Wall Street desires whichever it is, require for the US to do something in the middle East, whatever policy objective the US still has for the middle East and try to make it happen.
The US, "Trump" or the Pentagon (Whoever F'n really controls "it", US final goal strategy) can't just sit and watch as the rebels were destroyed, Russia positioned in Syria, China investing in Iraq, or simply explained a different way- the US Left with nothing in the middle East, maybe in possession of some oil fields in Syria but otherwise Iran really having more influence in the Middle East than the US, but there US is trying to do something.
Although those comments could have been written by anyone, I guess.
Interesting how that word "apologetics" keeps coming up over and over again on the internet, when I'd never heard of it prior to about a month ago.
Joe,
Your analysis is based entirely on the assumption Trump was for once telling the truth when he said he was trying to stop a war. There is no proof, or even likelihood, that this was not just one more of his
dailyhourly lies and exaggerations.And if this motive in fact was the case, it is more than likely that the Israelis ("We're going to do it! Yes we are! This time we really mean it! We're going to start a war on Iran very, very, very, very soon! A really really bad war!!") were lying. Israel lies constantly, and for all Jews, the Kol Nidrei Prayer, enshrining their right to lie, is their most holy prayer, akin to our Christian Lord's Prayer.
Israel has managed through lies, fake intelligence, bribery, (aka campaign contributions from its agents like Sheldon Adelson,) threats and media assassinations, to manipulate the United States into being its bitch for over 70 years already. It is more than likely that this was just one more instance of that.
And if Iran should retaliate, and Trump should strike Iran, [according to his own tweet: ...."targeted 52 Iranian sites (representing the 52 American hostages taken by Iran many years ago), some at a very high level & important to Iran & the Iranian culture "...] - note that what he is threatening falls under the definition of genocide - every Jew in the Knesset would wank their little circumcised putzim in celebration.
The inventor of psychology was Sigmund Freud, and the inventor of manipulating people's emotions was his nephew Edward Bernays, who himself characterized his own methods as "psychological warfare." Jews have been studying goyim for millennia, and IMHO, they have concluded that the best way of destroying goy civilization is to get them to destroy each other while G-d's Chosen People stand aside and watch with satisfaction.
I know for a fact that the Mossad fed false information to the CIA in weekly meetings at CIA facilities prior to the US invasion of Iraq. Some of these lies were famously quoted by Bush and Colin Powell. It is entirely possible that (Jews always being likely to keep on trying the same old tricks again and again until they blow up in their faces,) that this is exactly what happened again here. And Trump being what the politically correct Left would call "Intellectually Challenged," he fell for it.
There is an unspoken rule in global politics that nations, who have immense resources at their disposal, do not assassinate each other's leaders. Nothing would be easier for a government to do, and so the leaders respect each other's right to life and safety, and while they may conduct murders of lesser actors, and attack each other's infrastructure and citizens, they refrain from targeting each other. The idiot Trump, who is not only an idiot but a narcissist and a bombast and a bully, has crossed this red line. What happens next is anyone's guess. If this unspoken rule no longer applies, we could see leaders begin to fall like dominoes.
Consider this: The much-demonized Russia, or North Korea or China, could smuggle a 5-megaton nuke into Washington DC (aboard a small watercraft on the Potomac or in a panel truck) and detonate it two miles from the Capitol when Trump is giving his State of the Union speech. This would instantly kill every member of the House, the Senate, the Supreme Court, the Cabinet, the President and Vice President, and the Joint Chiefs of Staff of every branch of the armed forces. One member of the Cabinet, only, does not attend this speech, just in case of such a scenario, but he or she is probably not far away in Washington, DC, and would also perish. Who would order a counterstrike?
Now, one sees the danger of crossing this unspoken red line, which the cretin goniff Trump has just done, most likely prodded by Israeli lies and deceptions. Amongst the Goyische nations of the world, it is now open season on assassinations. Marvelous! Mazel tov! Just what the Talmud has always urged upon the Synagogue of Satan.
We have exhausted our pretenses of forgiveness and letting bygones be bygones as the police who kept a secret warehouse for detainees prior to booking showed. They were using coercive hypnosis to find WHAT? If the detainees were guilty of anything? If they had assets the cops could get their hands on? If their guilt over anything even as a child could be used to recreate an adult crime they would be on the alert to stop? Didn't work too well in Barron WI did it?
Where is the America I was promised as a child? Where is the America I was taught by my teachers to believe in?
1) For America. Official Video [Link]
For America. Homemade video with lyrics . (Very well done!!) [Link]
(One lyric verse excerpt: OR, Same album, title track.: Lives in the Balance Official Video: [Link]
Jackson Browne RC
How Trump decided to kill Iran’s Soleimani [Link]
The Dogs of War [Link]
Reuters: Provide independently verifiable facts, or stand accused and convicted of being the uncritical mouthpieces for corruption that this article makes you appear to be.