Strike Ordered by Trump Kills Iranian Military Leader

“President Trump authorized the Friday strike that killed Qassem Soleimani, leader of the foreign wing of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, to thwart attacks planned against Americans,” the Wall Street Journal reports.

The Washington Post reports the strike was a “dramatic escalation of tensions between the two countries that could lead to widespread violence in the region and beyond.”

“Despite a long period of increasing tension between Iran and the Trump administration, which has vowed a tougher stance on Tehran’s support for proxy groups, the attack against such a key figure in Iran’s security establishment came as a surprise to many analysts, in part because it was seen as likely to ignite a significant Iranian response.”