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Iraqi TV Reports Strike Kills Powerful Iranian Revolutionary Guard Commander Iraqi TV Reports Strike Kills Powerful Iranian Revolutionary Guard Commander
(30 minutes later)
BAGHDAD — Iraqi state television reported Friday that the powerful commander of Iran’s Revolutionary Guards Corps, Maj. Gen. Qassim Suleimani, was killed in a strike on the Baghdad International Airport early Friday. BAGHDAD — Iraqi state television reported Friday that a powerful commander of Iran’s Revolutionary Guards Corps, Maj. Gen. Qassim Suleimani, was killed in a strike on the Baghdad International Airport early Friday.
Iranian and American officials have not confirmed the death of General Suleimani.Iranian and American officials have not confirmed the death of General Suleimani.
If confirmed, the killing of General Suleimani, would be a major blow for Iran and a major escalation of President Trump’s “maximum pressure” campaign against Iran, which began with economic sanctions but has steadily moved into the military arena.
American officials consider General Suleimani, the commander of the Revolutionary Guards’ elite Quds Force, responsible for the deaths of hundreds of American soldiers during the Iraq War and hostile Iranian activities throughout the Middle East.
“If true, this is devastating for the Iranian Revolutionary Guards Corps, the regime and Khamenei’s regional ambitions,” said Mark Dubowitz, chief executive of the hawkish Foundation for Defense of Democracies, a conservative think tank that supports a hard line against Iran, referring to the country’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
“For 23 years, he has been the equivalent of the J.S.O.C. commander, the C.I.A. director and Iran’s real foreign minister,” Mr. Dubowitz said, using an acronym for the United States Joint Special Operations Command. “He is irreplaceable and indispensable” to Iran’s military establishment.
The strike killed five people, including the pro-Iranian chief of an umbrella group for Iraqi militias, Iraqi television reported and militia officials confirmed. The militia chief, Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis, was a strongly pro-Iranian figure.The strike killed five people, including the pro-Iranian chief of an umbrella group for Iraqi militias, Iraqi television reported and militia officials confirmed. The militia chief, Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis, was a strongly pro-Iranian figure.
The public relations chief for the umbrella group, the Popular Mobilization Forces in Iraq, Mohammed Ridha Jabri, was killed as well.The public relations chief for the umbrella group, the Popular Mobilization Forces in Iraq, Mohammed Ridha Jabri, was killed as well.
Two other people were killed in the strike, according to an officer at the Baghdad joint command.Two other people were killed in the strike, according to an officer at the Baghdad joint command.
The attack appears to have been an airstrike that hit two vehicles, the officer said.The attack appears to have been an airstrike that hit two vehicles, the officer said.
The strike was the second attack at the airport within hours. An earlier attack, late Thursday, involved three rockets that did not appear to have caused any injuries. According to a general with the Iraqi Joint Command, General Suleimani and Mr. Ridha, the militia public relations official, arrived by plane at Baghdad International Airport from Syria.
The attack came at a moment of high tension between the United States and Iran. Two cars stopped at the bottom of the airplane steps and picked them up. Mr. al-Muhandis was in one of the cars.
The United States said that an Iranian-backed militia fired 31 rockets into a base in Kirkuk Province, last week, killing an American contractor and wounding several American and Iraqi servicemen. As the two cars left the airport, they were bombed, the general said, speaking on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to reporters.
The strike was the second attack at the airport within hours.
An earlier attack, late Thursday, involved three rockets that did not appear to have caused any injuries.
The strikes followed a Thursday afternoon warning from Defense Secretary Mark T. Esper, who said the United States military would pre-emptively strike Iranian-backed forces in Iraq and Syria if there were signs the paramilitary groups were planning more attacks against American bases and personnel in the region.
The strikes also come days after American forces bombed three outposts of Kataib Hezbollah, an Iranian-supported militia in Iraq and Syria, in retaliation for the death of an American contractor in a rocket attack last week near the Iraqi city of Kirkuk.
“If we get word of attacks, we will take pre-emptive action as well to protect American forces, protect American lives,” Mr. Esper said. “The game has changed.”
The United States said that Kataib Hezbollah fired 31 rockets into a base in Kirkuk Province, last week, killing an American contractor and wounding several American and Iraqi servicemen.
The Americans responded by bombing three sites of the Khataib Hezbollah militia near Qaim in western Iraq and two sites in Syria. Khataib Hezbollah denied involvement in the attack in Kirkuk.The Americans responded by bombing three sites of the Khataib Hezbollah militia near Qaim in western Iraq and two sites in Syria. Khataib Hezbollah denied involvement in the attack in Kirkuk.
Pro-Iranian militia members then marched on the American Embassy on Tuesday, effectively imprisoning its diplomats inside for more than 24 hours while thousands of militia members thronged outside. They burned the embassy’s reception area, planted militia flags on its roof and scrawled graffiti on its walls.Pro-Iranian militia members then marched on the American Embassy on Tuesday, effectively imprisoning its diplomats inside for more than 24 hours while thousands of militia members thronged outside. They burned the embassy’s reception area, planted militia flags on its roof and scrawled graffiti on its walls.
They withdrew late Wednesday afternoon.They withdrew late Wednesday afternoon.
Falih Hassan reported from Baghdad, Alissa J. Rubin from Paris, and Michael Crowley from Washington.
Falih Hassan reported from Baghdad and Alissa J. Rubin from Paris.Falih Hassan reported from Baghdad and Alissa J. Rubin from Paris.