Thread: US carries out ‘precision defensive strikes’ in Iraq and Syria against Iranian-backed

Originally Posted by OhOh

Thanks for such factual reporting of a Reuters puff piece.

You are more than welcome.

The old adage "if you don't like the answer, don't ask the question" does apply here. As far as a "puff" piece, well, our capabilities and/or information is/are pretty much limited to what is provided in the media. There is one other possible method to get your question answered, you could ring up the donald and ask him, let us know what he said.

The truth of the matter is that Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis is/was icing on the cake. He wasn't the primary target but was in close proximity - just icing on the cake. No tears shed due to his demise in good ole Ameristan.

Originally Posted by sabang

The US seems to specialise in these sort of futile exercises

Indeed. Bringing freedom, democracy and human rights to folks by occupying their country simply doesn't work. That now decades old exercise in Vietnam should be proof enough but guess not.

Originally Posted by sabang

one has to wonder how much of it is for domestic political purposes

One only needs to see the share prices of the MIC rise to understand it's a MAGA for the 0.01%

Allegedly there is an Iraqi government meeting today to discuss the events. Let's wait and see what the politicians there can agree to.

^

More propaganda trash from one of TD's village idiots.

Originally Posted by OhOh

"If the Iraqi leaders and all Iraqi factions do not show wisdom and restraint in dealing with such a conflict...

Caught my eye, couldn't resist a

Apparently, Pompeo has stated on fox news that the Brits, France snd Germany (who've yet to issue a statement as they cannot agree wording) have not been helpful like US regional allies Saudis etc. Well ffs Mike, keeping your European allies in the dark ain't exactly helpful either you Mercan twat...jesus H on a bike.

Mike Pence shares 9/11 conspiracy theory about Qassem Soleimani in attempt to justify killing
Official 9/11 report undermines vice president's criticism of killed Iranian general

8 hours ago
56 comments

Mike Pence has promoted an unsubstantiated theory linking the 9/11 terrorist attacks to Iran in his defence of the Trump administration’s killing of Qassem Soleimani.

Donald Trump’s vice president posted a Twitter thread on Saturday in which he described Iran’s top military commander as “an evil man responsible for killing thousands of Americans”.

In the thread, Mr Pence claimed Soleimani had “assisted in the clandestine travel to Afghanistan of 10 of the 12 terrorists who carried out the September 11 terrorist attacks in the United States”.

However, his accusation is undermined by the conclusions of the official government report on the attacks.

The 9/11 commission report found “no evidence that Iran or Hezbollah was aware of the planning for what later became the 9/11 attack”.

The report added: “At the time of their travel through Iran, the al-Qaeda operatives themselves were probably not aware of the specific details of their future operation.”

Soleimani's killing is a major escalation in US-Iran tensions and has sparked fears of a direct war between the two countries.

The White House has said the killing was a "decisive defensive action to protect US personnel abroad".

In response to the vice president, foreign policy experts were quick to point out there were 19 terrorists who carried out the 9/11 attacks, not 12, and the majority of them came from US allies Saudi Arabia.

Katie Waldman, Mr Pence’s press secretary, later clarified that the vice president was referring to 12 of the 19 hijackers who “transited through Afghanistan”.

“For those asking: 12 of the 19 transited through Afghanistan. Ten of those 12 were assisted by Soleimani,” Ms Waldman wrote, without providing any further evidence for the commander’s involvement.

The 9/11 report does acknowledge at least eight of the hijackers “transited Iran on their way to or from Afghanistan”, but this is thought to be because they were “taking advantage of the Iranian practice of not stamping Saudi passports”.

Although Soleimani was a senior figure in Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps at the time of the attacks, he is not named in the 9/11 commission report.

It is also unclear why the commander, a leading military figure in a majority Shia Muslim country, would have assisted al-Qaeda, a militant Sunni Islamist group with links to Saudi Arabia.

In a 2018 study by the think tank New America, al-Qaeda is said to view Iran as a “hostile entity” and found “no evidence of cooperation between al-Qaeda and Iran on planning or carrying out terrorist attacks” in the documents studied.

Mike Pompeo, the US secretary of state, said in 2019 he had no doubt “there is a connection between the Islamic Republic of Iran and al-Qaeda.”

“The factual question with respect to Iran’s connections to al-Qaeda is very real. They have hosted al-Qaeda. They have permitted al-Qaeda to transit their country,” Mr Pompeo told the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.

However, a senior US government official later told congress that the American intelligence community had no evidence of the Iranian government cooperating with al-Qaeda in recent aggressive moves in the Persian Gulf region, according to The Daily Beast.

Establishing a link between the country and al-Qaeda could be a method for legally justifying a war with Iran under the 2001 Authorisation for Use of Military Force.

That law states that the president may “use all necessary and appropriate force against those nations, organisations, or persons he determines planned, authorised, committed, or aided the terrorist attacks that occurred on 11 September 2001, or harboured such organisations or persons”.

https://www.independent.co.uk/news/w...-a9270271.html

Just heard some rather dodgy individuals protest that the Senate and senior Dems should've been primed prior to the action.









I agree, two minutes before kickoff, then live stream the scramble for their phones.

^only one pic showing^

Originally Posted by Pragmatic

Just my my opinion...

And you’re clearly very dim.

Remembering what a great Jihad Leader Mr. Salami was.

https://teakdoor.com/bangkok-forum/1...ml#post2017537





Anyone claiming Iran/Salami was not behind this is just simply stupid or a Jihadi.

Originally Posted by Klondyke

Iraqis 'dancing in the street' after Soleimani death: Pompeo

WASHINGTON: U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo posted a video on Twitter Thursday he said showed Iraqis "dancing in the street" over the killing of top Iranian commander Qasem Soleimani by the United States.

January 4, 2020
Pompeo convicted of misinformation over the killing of Suleimani

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo exaggerated the reaction of Iraqis to the killing in Baghdad of the head of the special forces of the Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) Kassem Suleimani. In this he was caught by The New York Times .

The newspaper indicates that the diplomat posted on his Twitter page a real video from Iraq, but his description did not correspond to reality. Thus, a post that has actively spread across social networks can be considered an example of another disinformation.

So, Pompeo said that Iraqis “dance in the streets in support of freedom”, although in reality people just ran with flags. In addition, only one man rejoiced directly over the murder of Suleymani. At the same time, a small group of people chanted that the death of the general was a revenge for the death of Iraqis who protested against the presence of Iran in their country. Eyewitnesses also explained to the newspaper that this action lasted no more than two minutes.

https://lenta.ru/news/2020/01/04/pompeos_reaction/

Originally Posted by Klondyke

Pompeo convicted of misinformation

I wish. But this is just more of your bullshit propaganda comrade.

Originally Posted by HermantheGerman

Remembering what a great Jihad Leader Mr. Salami was.

https://teakdoor.com/bangkok-forum/1...ml#post2017537





Anyone claiming Iran/Salami was not behind this is just simply stupid or a Jihadi.

You're being unfair. To paraphrases the legless one's testimony in court, this Bangkok gig started off as an innocent holiday for the 3 or 4 of them to visit temples and sample the delights of Thai cuisine, but it started going wrong when they rented a house, found some bombs/grenades the owner must have left behind in a kitchen cupboard, decided to do the right thing and dispose of them in the local canal but one went off injuring some of them so the others legged it and he tried to catch a taxi to another canal that doesn't make bombs go off but the taxi driver saw he was covered in blood and refused to take him and cops started circling at about that time so he decided to throw the remaining grenades away in case they go off and hurt someone but a tree was in the way of the first one which bounced back taking his legs off.

Official statements by the world's Foreign Ministers.

Press release on Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov’s telephone conversation with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi

"On January 4, Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov had a telephone conversation with Minister of Foreign Affairs of the People’s Republic of China Wang Yi. The parties exchanged opinions on topical global issues. They discussed the state of affairs in the Middle East at length. The ministers particularly focused on the aftermath of the US air strike at a Baghdad airport that resulted in deaths, including the assassination of Qasem Soleimani, Commander of Iran’s IRGC Quds Force. The ministers confirmed that it is unacceptable to use force in violation of the UN Charter and that all countries must respect the sovereignty and territorial integrity of other states.
The ministers noted that the unlawful actions of the United States have aggravated the situation in the region. In these circumstances, Russia and China are interested in de-escalation and will take joint steps to create conditions for the peaceful resolution to conflicts.
The heads of the Russian and Chinese foreign ministries confirmed their intention to cooperate closely with regard to the UN Security Council agenda."

https://www.mid.ru/en/foreign_policy...ent/id/3989730
Press release on Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov’s telephone conversation with Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif

"On January 4, Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov had a telephone conversation with Foreign Minister of the Islamic Republic of Iran Mohammad Javad Zarif, at the latter’s initiative. Sergey Lavrov offered his condolences in the wake of the assassination of Qasem Soleimani, Commander of the special-task Quds Force of the Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps, who was killed by the US military near Baghdad.
The ministers stressed that this US action was a grave violation of the fundamental standards of international law and does not contribute to resolving the complicated issues in the Middle East. Instead, it will trigger a new round of escalation in the region."

https://www.mid.ru/en/foreign_policy...ent/id/3989694

Press release on Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov’s telephone conversation with Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu

"On January 4, Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov had a telephone conversation with Foreign Minister of Turkey Mevlut Cavusoglu. The ministers discussed the situation around the assassination of Qasem Soleimani, Commander of the special-task Quds Force of the Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps, who was killed by the US military on January 3, 2019 in Baghdad.
Sergey Lavrov stressed that this US action was a grave violation of the fundamental standards of international law and does not contribute to achieving the counter-terrorist goals declared by Washington.
The parties expressed concern over the potential serious consequences of the US action for peace and stability in the Middle East."
The ministers also covered the Syrian settlement and the state of affairs in Libya in the context of preparing for upcoming top-level contacts"

https://www.mid.ru/en/foreign_policy...ent/id/3989704

Also one with a secretary.

Press release on Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov’s telephone conversation with US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo

"On January 3, Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov had a telephone conversation with United States Secretary of State Mike Pompeo.
The parties discussed the situation in connection with the killing by the US military of Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps Commander Major General Qasem Soleimani in an airstrike on Baghdad airport.
Sergey Lavrov stressed that targeted actions by a UN member state to eliminate officials of another UN member state, and on the territory of a third sovereign country without its knowledge grossly violate the principles of international law and deserve condemnation.
The Russian Minster pointed out that this act by the United States is fraught with grave consequences for the regional peace and stability, does not facilitate efforts to find solutions to the complicated issues that have built up in the Middle East but, on the contrary, leads to a new round of escalation. Moscow urges Washington to give up illegal military actions to achieve its goals on the international arena and to settle all problems at the negotiating table."

https://www.mid.ru/en/foreign_policy...ent/id/3989636

Love the the stench of Russian hypocrisy, they've been merrily doting around Europe bumping off people for the last decade who've upset Putin, who's got as thin a skin as the orange one.

American strike in Iraq prompts anti-war protests in U.S. cities

"Groups of protesters took to the streets in Washington and other U.S. cities on Saturday to condemn the air strike in Iraq ordered by President Donald Trump that killed Iranian military commander Qassem Soleimani and Trump’s decision to send about 3,000 more troops to the Middle East. “No justice, no peace. U.S. out of the Middle East,” hundreds of demonstrators chanted outside the White House before marching to the Trump International Hotel a few blocks away.

Similar protests were held in New York, Chicago and other cities. Organizers at Code Pink, a women-led anti-war group, said protests were scheduled on Saturday in numerous U.S. cities and towns.

Protesters in Washington held signs that read “No war or sanctions on Iran!” and “U.S. troops out of Iraq!”
Speakers at the Washington event included actress and activist Jane Fonda, who last year was arrested at a climate change protest on the steps of the U.S. Capitol.
“The younger people here should know that all of the wars fought since you were born have been fought over oil,” Fonda, 82, told the crowd, adding that “we can’t anymore lose lives and kill people and ruin an environment because of oil.”

“Going to a march doesn’t do a lot, but at least I can come out and say something: that I’m opposed to this stuff,” said protestor Steve Lane of Bethesda, Maryland. “And maybe if enough people do the same thing, he (Trump) will listen.”
Soleimani, regarded as the second most powerful figure in Iran, was killed in the U.S. strike on his convoy at Baghdad airport on Friday in a dramatic escalation of hostilities in the Middle East between Iran and the United States and its allies.

Public opinion polls show Americans in general have been opposed to U.S. military interventions overseas. A survey last year by the Chicago Council on Global Affairs found 27% of Americans believe military interventions make the United States safer, and nearly half said they make the country less safe."

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-i...-idUSKBN1Z30N3

Nothing like a good war to distract from impeachment trials and such.

Originally Posted by bsnub

I wish. But this is just more of your bullshit propaganda comrade.

Obviously, Putin typed the Twitter in Pompeo's name...
(Or The New York Times?)

Iraqi PM and Saudi Crown Prince discuss ramifications of events in Iraq

“Prime Minister Adel Abdul Mahdi received a phone call from the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in which they discussed the difficult conditions facing Iraq and the region,” Abdul Mahdi’s office said in a statement.

“They exchanged points of view on the expected ramifications and the importance of mitigating their effects as well as avoiding total escalation.”

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-iraq-security-saudi/iraqi-pm-and-saudi-crown-prince-discuss-ramifications-of-events-in-iraq-idUSKBN1Z30MF?il=0



Iraq parliament to convene amid calls to expel U.S. troops

"Iraq’s parliament is set to convene an extraordinary session on Sunday where lawmakers told Reuters they would push for a vote on a resolution requiring the government to request the withdrawal of U.S. troops from Iraq. The session comes two days after a U.S. drone strike on a convoy at Baghdad airport which killed Iranian military commander Qassem Soleimani and Iraqi militia leader Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis.

“There is no need for the presence of American forces after defeating Daesh (Islamic State),” said Ammar al-Shibli, a Shi’ite lawmaker and member of the parliamentary legal committee.

“We have our own armed forces which are capable of protecting the country,” he said.

Despite decades of enmity between Iran and the United States, Iran-backed militia and U.S. troops fought side by side during Iraq’s 2014-2017 war against Islamic State militants.

Around 5,000 U.S. troops remain in Iraq, most of them in an advisory capacity.
The militia were incorporated into government forces under the umbrella of the Popular Mobilisation Forces which Muhandis led.
Many Iraqis, including opponents of Soleimani, have expressed anger at Washington for killing the two men on Iraqi soil and possibly dragging their country into another conflict.

Since the killings, rival Shi’ite political leaders have called for U.S. troops to be expelled from Iraq in an unusual show of unity among factions that have squabbled for months.
Hadi al-Amiri, the top candidate to succeed Muhandis, repeated his call for U.S. troops to leave Iraq on Saturday during an elaborate funeral procession for those killed in the attack.
A vote to expel U.S. troops would need parliament to pass a law obliging the Iraqi government to ask U.S. troops to leave.
Prime Minister Adel Abdul Mahdi, who is now caretaker prime minister after resigning in November under pressure from street protests, on Friday called for parliament to convene an extraordinary session to take legislative steps to protect Iraq’s sovereignty. "

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-i...KBN1Z407Z?il=0


‘No more war’: Demonstrators crowd Seattle park to oppose potential U.S. conflict with Iran


"Nilofar Ganjaie wasn’t sure what to expect when she headed Saturday to a “No More War” demonstration at Victor Steinbrueck Park above the downtown Seattle waterfront.

“Part of me was scared to come because I was worried there weren’t going to be very many people, or any people,” said Ganjaie, who hasn’t been able to contact her father in Iran since the U.S. airstrike that killed Iranian military leader Qassem Soleimani in Iraq this week – an attack that brought threats of retaliation from Iran and worries about a new war in the Middle East.

The Seattle resident and board member of the National Iranian American Council’s lobbying organization said she was heartened when she saw several hundred peace demonstrators gathered in pouring rain chanting “No war” and waving signs.

“Thank you so much for being here,” she told the crowd, taking the microphone after remarks from representatives of socialist political parties, various activist organizations and the group Veterans for Peace. “It’s really meaningful to see a lot of people … who care about my community and the actions this (Trump) administration just took.”
Many speakers at the rally railed against President Donald Trump and American aggression abroad, with some invoking protests decades ago against the Vietnam War and more recently against the Iraq War.

Demonstrators shared concerns about ordinary people in Iran, Iraq and the U.S. who would be caught up in a war between the U.S. and Iran, and some speakers critical of U.S. actions also encouraged solidarity with Iranians protesting their own country’s regime.
“The sins of Soleimani aside, it was absolutely a reckless decision … that’s put a lot of people in danger,” Ganjaie said about the Trump-ordered strike on a man deemed one of the most dangerous military operators in the Middle East by the U.S. and its allies.

When the rally ended, some protestors marched through Pike Place Market."

https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/protesters-gather-in-seattle-to-decry-u-s-airstrike-in-iran/

Official statements by the world's Foreign Ministers from the Wanker Newsroom:

Press release on Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov’s telephone conversation with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi

"On January 4, Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov had a telephone conversation with Minister of Foreign Affairs of the People’s Republic of China Wang Yi. The parties exchanged opinions on topical global issues. They discussed the state of affairs in Chechnya and Xinjiang at length. The ministers particularly focused on how they can keep up their attrocities towards muslims. The ministers confirmed that it acceptable to use force in violation of the UN Charter and that all countries, except China and Russia, respect the sovereignty and territorial integrity of other states.
The ministers noted that the unlawful actions of Russia and China have aggravated the situation in their region. In these circumstances, Russia and China are interested in escalating and will take joint steps to create conditions for more attrocities.
The heads of the Russian and Chinese foreign ministries confirmed their intention to cooperate closely with regard to the UN Security Council agenda."

https://www.mid.ru/bullshit/3989730

Soleimani was a monster, wanted atomic cloud over Tel Aviv - German newspaper

The title of Reichelt’s commentary was, “Trump has freed the world from a monster.”

Julian Reichelt, the editor-in-chief of best-selling German newspaper Bild, on Friday authored a barn-burning commentary praising US President Donald Trump for authorizing a military strike to eliminate Iranian General Qassem Soleimani.
"President Trump has freed the world of a monster whose aim in life was an atomic cloud over Tel Aviv. Trump has acted in self-defense – the self-defense of the US and all peace-loving people," wrote Reichelt.
He added that “the Iranian terror godfather Qassem Soleimani stood for a world that no peace-loving person can want: a world in which you can be torn apart by a bomb at any time because you are in the wrong place at the wrong time.
”The commentary singled out Soleimani’s scorched-earth campaign in the Syrian war: "A world in which entire cities are wiped out – like Aleppo. In which bloodthirsty militia go from door to door and execute civilians.
"Reichelt noted the potential of Iran’s regime to carry out terrorism in Germany and Israel, "in which the kindergartens in Germany could burn up in fireballs at any time because its children are Jewish. In which Israel is under threat of extinction every day.
"The title of Reichelt’s commentary was, “Trump has freed the world from a monster.
”The US Pentagon said it took preventive military action against Soleimani because he planned attacks against American diplomats. According to the US State Department, Soleimani oversaw terrorist operations that were “responsible for the deaths of at least 603 American service members in Iraq.
”The US Ambassador to Germany, Richard Grenell, wrote on Twitter, “As a diplomat, I believe there isn’t enough media attention on the fact that General Soleimani was planning to attack US diplomats. DonaldTrump caught Soleimani in the act. And saved lives by stopping him.
”Reichelt wrote: "Soleimani, the world’s most repelling and bloodthirsty terrorist, who brought suffering and harm over humanity on the mullahs’ behalf, was an enemy of our civilization. He represented the unbearable thought that murderers will live more safely and be more untouchable the more people they kill (with the support of the state).
"The editor-in-chief declared that, "His violent and overdue end will not stop global terrorism, but the image of his burnt-out car still sends out a powerful message. US President Donald Trump has made it clear that the worst figures in the world, however big-mouthed and ruthless they may be, cannot hide from America’s strength."

https://www.bild.de/politik/kolumnen...3674.bild.html