War Iran-United States Military Crisis of 2020 - US Baghdad embassy under siege, rocket fire in US Baghdad green zone, Ukrainian Airlines flight 752 crash, and more!

January 10th:
Exclusive: Informants in Iraq, Syria helped U.S. kill Iran's Soleimani - sources (archive)(post)
Iraqi Shia cleric whose militia killed American troops says crisis is over following Iran strike and Trump speech (archive)(post)
Iraqi PM tells US to decide mechanism for troop withdrawal (archive)(post)
Mike Pence says Congress might 'compromise sources and methods' if fully briefed on the Soleimani strike (archive)(post)
Unidentified planes hit Iraqi militiamen in Syria, killing 8 (archive)(post)
Iraq: The Master Of Mayhem Meets A Missile (archive)(post)
Eliminating Qasem Soleimani was Donald Trump’s Middle East farewell letter (archive)(post)
Iran uses BULLDOZERS to clear debris from plane crash site while accusing US of ‘big lie’ that they shot it down (archive)(post)
Swiss Back Channel Helped Defuse U.S.-Iran Crisis (post)

January 11th:
UKRAINIAN AIRCRAFT WAS BROUGHT DOWN IN IRAN DUE TO 'HUMAN ERROR' (archive)(post)
Iran minister says 'human error' caused by 'US adventurism' led to deadly crash of Ukrainian jetliner (archive)(post)
Ukrainian aircraft was brought down in Iran due to 'human error' (archive)(post)
Trump, at Ohio rally, says Democrats would have leaked Soleimani attack plans (archive)(post)
The Atlantic's David Frum blames Trump for downing of plane in Iran, deaths of 176 (archive)(post)
Associated Press changes ‘shockingly bad’ headline about Soleimani, Ukrainian plane crash after backlash (archive)(post)
GOP Rep. Doug Collins apologizes for saying Democrats are 'in love with terrorists' (archive)(post)
Iran demands West 'show findings' as new video reveals aircraft was struck before fiery crash (archive)(post)
Warren town hall interrupted by angry protester accusing her of ‘siding with terrorists’ (archive)(post)
Trump administration announces new sanctions on Iran (archive)(post)
Prepare For the Worst From Iran Cyber Attacks, As DHS Issues Warning: Experts (archive)(post)
Trump tells Fox News' Laura Ingraham 'four embassies' were targeted in imminent threat from Iran (archive)(post)
Trump tweets support for Iranian protesters as they demand Khamenei quit (archive)(post)
Trump warns Iran against ‘another massacre’ as protests flare over downed jet (archive)(post)

January 12th:
Trump tweet in Farsi 'the most liked Persian tweet' in history of Twitter (archive)(post)
Iraq warned to keep US troops or risk financial blow-WSJ (archive)(post)
Iran arrests UK ambassador in what Britain calls ‘flagrant violation of international law’ (archive)(post)

January 13th:
Trump authorized Soleimani's killing 7 months ago, with conditions (archive)(post)

edit: This is a WIP. All links are posted in the order they appear in the thread, not in chronological order of their publication.


---Original OP before the merge---
Iraqi supporters of Iran-backed militia attack US Embassy
https://apnews.com/75228a8a607a44863b57021ac33264dc (http://archive.vn/ljm9Y)

By QASSIM ABDUL-ZAHRA12 minutes ago

BAGHDAD (AP) — Dozens of angry Iraqi Shiite militia supporters broke into the U.S. Embassy compound in Baghdad on Tuesday after smashing a main door and setting fire to a reception area, prompting tear gas and sounds of gunfire.

An Associated Press reporter at the scene saw flames rising from inside the compound and at least three U.S. soldiers on the roof of the main building inside embassy. It was not clear what caused the fire at the reception area near the parking lot of the compound. A man on a loudspeaker urged the mob not to enter the compound, saying: “The message was delivered.”

The embassy attack followed deadly U.S. airstrikes on Sunday that killed 25 fighters of the Iran-backed militia in Iraq, the Kataeb Hezbollah. The U.S. military said it was in retaliation for last week’s killing of an American contractor in a rocket attack on an Iraqi military base that it had blamed on the militia.

Dozens of protesters marched inside the compound after smashing the gate used by cars to enter the embassy. The protesters, many in militia uniform, stopped in a corridor after about 5 meters (16 feet), and were only about 200 meters away from the main building. Half a dozen U.S. soldiers were seen on the roof of the main building, their guns were pointed at the protesters.

Smoke from the tear gas rose in the area, and at least three of the protesters appeared to have difficulties breathing. It wasn’t immediately known whether the embassy staff had remained inside the main building.

The protesters hanged a poster on the wall: “America is an aggressor.”

Shouting “Down, Down USA,” the crowd tried to push inside the embassy grounds, hurling water and stones over its walls. They raised yellow militia flags and taunted the embassy’s security staff who remained behind the glass windows in the gates’ reception area. They sprayed graffiti on the wall and windows in red in support of the Kataeb Hezbollah militia: “Closed in the name of the resistance.”

Hundreds of angry protesters, some in militia uniforms, set up tents outside the embassy. As tempers rose, the mob set fire to three trailers used by security guards along the embassy wall.

No one was immediately reported hurt in the rampage and security staff had withdrawn to inside the embassy earlier, soon after protesters gathered outside.

The U.S. attack — the largest targeting an Iraqi state-sanctioned militia in recent years — and the subsequent calls by the militia for retaliation, represent a new escalation in the proxy war between the U.S. and Iran playing out in the Middle East.

Tuesday’s attempted embassy storming took place after mourners and supporters held funerals for the militia fighters killed in a Baghdad neighborhood, after which they marched on to the heavily fortified Green Zone and kept walking till they reached the sprawling U.S. Embassy there.

AP journalists then saw the crowd as they tried to scale the walls of the embassy, in what appeared to be an attempt to storm it, shouting “Down, down USA!” and “Death to America” and “Death to Israel.”

U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said Sunday’s strikes send the message that the U.S. will not tolerate actions by Iran that jeopardize American lives.

The Iranian-backed Iraqi militia had vowed Monday to retaliate for the U.S. military strikes. The attack and vows for revenge raised concerns of new attacks that could threaten American interests in the region.

The U.S. attack also outraged both the militias and the Iraqi government, which said it will reconsider its relationship with the U.S.-led coalition — the first time it has said it will do so since an agreement was struck to keep some U.S. troops in the country. It called the attack a “flagrant violation” of its sovereignty.

In a partly televised meeting Monday, Iraqi Prime Minister Adel Abdul-Mahdi told Cabinet members that he had tried to stop the U.S. operation “but there was insistence” from American officials.

The U.S. military said “precision defensive strikes” were conducted against five sites of Kataeb Hezbollah, or Hezbollah Brigades in Iraq and Syria. The group, which is a separate force from the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah, operates under the umbrella of the state-sanctioned militias known collectively as the Popular Mobilization Forces. Many of them are supported by Iran.

.

 

[Spooky Bones]

Is there evidence that the military-age males involved in the attack on the embassy were actual Iranian agents versus people who were actually organically pissed off? It seems likely.

 

[not william stenchever]

I hope Iran doesn't try to do anything stupid like attempt to detonate a dirty bomb at the Superbowl.

 

[Spooky Bones]

I hope Iran doesn't try to do anything stupid like attempt to detonate a dirty bomb at the Superbowl.

It's not like they're HACKERS ON STEROIDS or anything

 

[Tootsie Bear]

I hope Iran doesn't try to do anything stupid like attempt to detonate a dirty bomb at the Superbowl.

It would surprise me if they were able to orchestrate an attack on U.S soil. Best bet is retaliation against U.S service men and contractors in Iraq.

 

[not william stenchever]

It would surprise me if they were able to orchestrate an attack on U.S soil. Best bet is retaliation against U.S service men and contractors in Iraq.

last time they tried didn't everyone get arrested right off the plane?

 

[Still Anonymous For This]

I generally agree with this statement. Could this lead to WW3 while Boogaloo 2020 is just around the corner? Yeah, it could. But it was a fair and measured response to the embassy if intel was correct for once. As people have stated, Soleimani wasn't very popular with the Iranian people to begin with, and we can only hope that Iran lets it go and looks at it as a blessing. Otherwise we're going to be playing whack-a-general an awful lot in 2020.

If Russia responds to this at all, it'll probably be with a "What the fuck did you expect to happen?".

Honestly, I yearn for the day when we grasp hands with Russia and glass the entire fucking sandbox together, because it's just not worth it anymore. We can find another playground to test our cool, new shit on each other. One where it's not 120 degrees in the fucking shade all goddamn year long.

Russia won't do squat. They'd have a hard time defeating Poland and the Baltics in a conventional war; much less trying to wrestle with the United States. They didn't even have enough smart munitions for their aircraft for Syria. Much less a conventional war with the US. Putin is not dumb enough to get into a shooting war with America. At the same time, seeing Polish Leopard 2s rolling through Minsk would be hilarious.

Iranians, on the other hand, are in a tough spot. We just turned the commander of the Quds Force into Chef Boyardee Ravioli. On one hand, we just showcased to the Iranians how easily we can expedite their commanders' meetings with Allah. On the other hand, this is going to make Iran look super weak in the region. Will Iran retaliate? Probably. They'll likely do something small and meaningless: a car bomb in Bumfuckistan, Iraq. Though they could pull full autism and have their proxies launch a rocket attack on the US Embassy in Baghdad or try to drone strike a US ship.

Personally? I hope they fuck up and do something stupid. We are not going to put boots on the ground (outside Special Forces) in Iran: we will, however, royally fuck them over from the air and turn their military bases into moonscapes. And Russia will sit in a corner and wring its hands and Medvedev will be trotted out on camera again to let us know that Russia's strategic rocket forces are now at 110% combat readiness, swearsies this time, we mean it!

 

[Fervent Champion]

Other than a spike in oil prices and few billion dollars in aid money to our Middle Eastern "allies" I'm not expecting much to come from this. Much like the last strikes. I could be wrong and everything should go south and then all out war could break. Who knows, going with the former.

 

[ForgedBlades]

1. Iran will shit itself and do nothing. Russia will shit itself and do nothing.
2. All of the TDS suffering speds on Twitter who are yelling about WW3 and Benghazi will have forgotten all about this by Saturday morning at the latest.

 

[Draza]

last time they tried didn't everyone get arrested right off the plane?

Past attacks against U.S targets in Iraq by Pro-Iranian forces has happen before.

Most famous and succesfull one being in 2007 by the Iranian backed, Asa'ib Ahl al-Haq group :

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Karbala_provincial_headquarters_raid

 

[Spooky Bones]

Crude

 

[Superman93]

Past attacks against U.S targets in Iraq by Pro-Iranian forces has happen before.

Most famous one being in 2007 by the Iranian backed, Asa'ib Ahl al-Haq: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Karbala_provincial_headquarters_raid

Holy fuck look at those vowels. Remind to participate in a Arabic wheel of fortune game.

 

[HumanHive]

You forget that Iran lives for this shit. They'll flood the gulf thousands of cheap kamikaze patrol boats and then melt back into the marshes when they're done. Yeah, the US will slaughter the Iranians, but their entire nation is a cult to spreading revolutionary islam. This is an escalation in an election year, and Trump should have avoided war until 2021.

 

[RodgerDodger]

I wouldn't underestimate the resonance martyrdom has in an Islamic country, and I'm pretty sure that the protesters have no particular love for America either especially given that I'm sure the State propaganda is highlighting how it's Amrika's fault they're in the dire straits they are.

Sulaimani is the heart and soul of the thing the Iranian Protestors are Protesting. He died stirring up shit on foreign soil while doing further damage to the Iranian Civilian Economy. The Iranian people are not stupid. They are among the most pragmatic of peoples in the Middle East. Sulaimani will be a hard sell as a Maryr beyond the actual IRGC.

Found this from /pol/, was he a in car or something that he looks like someone sweeped all the parts together like a cube. On a side note, most of /pol/ is mad and figured out he was a hardcore zionist all along.

\View attachment 1080523

There were 2 SUV's struck. They appear to have been standard explosive missiles.

There will be momentary arguments over the legalities and consequences of this hit, but I see it maintaining the same amount of palace intrigue as the extrajudicial droning of that US kid. Probably less since these dudes were known quantities. The parties are surprisingly bipartisan when it comes to drone death.

There will be no legal questions over this one. Trump was responding to an attack on an embassy, and used appropriate and otherwise restrained forse against those most involved. Not even China will raise much of a stink regarding it.

Why do people always assume trump is being bombastic and a blowhard when he says he's going to do something? Everytime he says he's going to do something he does it. Tehran has to be seething right now.

Trump remains one of th eeasiest of US presidents to predict. Yet they always assume the opposite. Granted Obama was easy to predict too. You simply assumed he would do nothing nor retaliate in any measurable way and you would be right. But Trump is remarkably straightforward about his actions. Anyone surprised just doesn't pay attention.

View attachment 1080552
I-is it happening?

Tehran will send a really really angry letter. And maybe file yet another complaint at the UN.

With regards simply to Iraq, there had already been renewed calls to eject U.S. forces from the country in response to the airstrikes on Kata'ib Hezbollah,

Aren't the Iraqi's optimists? Eject the US forces? I'm sensing another strongly worded letter.

 

[Tootsie Bear]

You forget that Iran lives for this shit. They'll flood the gulf thousands of cheap kamikaze patrol boats and then melt back into the marshes when they're done. Yeah, the US will slaughter the Iranians, but their entire nation is a cult to spreading revolutionary islam. This is an escalation in an election year, and Trump should have avoided war until 2021.

I can imagine that happening but on a smaller scale with a direct attack soon. If anything the U.S. can have the Saudi's and their Sunni mujahideen fighters act as their shield because of the Sunni-Shia sectarian issues.

 

[RodgerDodger]

1. Iran will shit itself and do nothing. Russia will shit itself and do nothing.
2. All of the TDS suffering speds on Twitter who are yelling about WW3 and Benghazi will have forgotten all about this by Saturday morning at the latest.

Putin will send Trump a fruitbasket and a congratulatory note. Russia cares little for Iran, but Putin does admire a decisive action and strong messaging with regards to an Embassy attack. Ask yourself what would have happened if a Russian Embassy was attacked? And you'll quickly realize why Russian Embassy's don't get attacked. Regardless of his views towards Iran, Putin is all for discouraging that sort of thing.

 

[kcbbq]

View attachment 1080590
Crude

If the market was actually scared the jump would have been a lot worse than 3.5 cents a gallon for the high quality stuff. That's the price of stuff like Brent and WTI. Futures people read geopolitics better than anyone as a whole because they really, really love money. They're more reliable than Vegas's sports lines.

 

[Angry Shoes]

I wish Israel would fight their own fucking wars. You want to control the Middle East? Fine. But stop dragging other people into your shit.

 

[MagneticTowels]

Well hell, my fear is Iran has tons of ballistic missiles. Alot of which are under the control of the irgc. Those guys could launch a ballistic missile strike and wipe the embassy off the map along with the rest of our bases. Ditto for israel. They could lob short range missiles and rockets over the purple line of the Golan into israel. If we go to war kiss the Saudi oil infrastructure goodbye. If that happens the global economy shits itself and well... Ww1 started for less shit then this. Let's see what it takes for ww3

Just like what TV Tropes says; We can't thwart stage one!

 

[Christ Cried]

Link / Archive

Baghdad (CNN) President Donald Trump ordered an airstrike at Baghdad International Airport that killed Qasem Soleimani, a key Iranian military commander, in a "decisive defensive action to protect US personnel abroad" that was intended to deter "future Iranian attack plans," the Pentagon confirmed Thursday.

Soleimani -- the head of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) Quds Force unit -- and Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis -- the deputy head of the Iran-backed Iraqi Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF) -- were among those killed in the attack early Friday morning local time, according to a statement from the PMF, which said the pair "were martyred by an American strike."

Formed in 2014 to fight ISIS, the PMF is a Shia paramilitary force made up of former militias with close ties to Iran. It was recognized under a 2016 Iraqi law as an independent military force that answers directly to the prime minister.

Soleimani and his Quds Force were responsible for the deaths of hundreds of American and coalition service members, and the wounding of thousands more, the Pentagon added. The Pentagon also blamed the Iranian general for orchestrating attacks on coalition bases in Iraq in recent months, including an attack on December 27 that culminated in the deaths of an American contractor and Iraqi personnel.

Soleimani was revered in Iran, where three days of national mourning have been declared. In a message published to his official website, the country's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei vowed revenge for the killing, saying that "harsh revenge awaits the criminals" involved.

Khamenei warned the fight would continue -- and added it had been Soleimani's wish for years to become a martyr.

"His pure blood was shed in the hands of the most depraved of human beings," Khamenei said.

In a tweet, Iran's Foreign Minister Javad Zarif described the US strike as an "act of international terrorism," adding that it was an "extremely dangerous and foolish escalation. "The US bears responsibility for all consequences of its rogue adventurism," he added.

'Target of opportunity'

The killing of Soleimani, one of the most powerful men in Iran and the wider region, is an audacious and unexpected move that marks a major escalation in tensions between Washington and Tehran that can be traced back to Trump's decision to withdraw from the Iran nuclear deal.

It also comes just hours after the Pentagon issued a strong warning to Iran-backed militias amid concerns they may conduct further provocations against the US following their attempt to storm the US embassy in Baghdad. According to the Pentagon, Soleimani also approved that attack.

Soleimani was "actively developing plans to attack American diplomats and service members in Iraq and throughout the region," according to the Pentagon, which cited the threat to US lives as justification for killing one of Iran's top-ranking military officials.

But a US official told CNN the strike against Soleimani was a "target of opportunity."

The strike had presidential authorization and the US opted for a pre-emptive option after the previous moves of maximum pressure didn't change the Iranian pattern of behavior, the official said.

The Green Zone in Baghdad was completely locked down by Iraqi security forces to prevent any emergency following the strike, two Iraqi Security sources told CNN.

Feisal Istrabadi, the founding director of the Indiana University Center for the Study of the Middle East, told CNN that the Iraqi government would be considerably weakened by the fact the strike happened on its soil.

"There will be an opportunity for the destabilization of the country," he said. "This is a huge deal throughout the Middle East. The fact that it was done over the territory of Iraq means that Iraq will become what I feared it would become from the beginning: the battleground between Iran and the United States."

US Lawmakers react

The news of Soleimani's killing generated starkly different reactions along party lines with Republicans heaping praise on Trump and Democrats expressing concerns about the legality and consequences of the strike.

Republicans reacted with almost uniform praise for Trump.

"I appreciate President @realDonaldTrump's bold action against Iranian aggression," GOP Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, a fierce Trump ally, wrote in a tweet Thursday. "To the Iranian government: if you want more, you will get more."

Two sources tell CNN that key Senate staff on relevant committees on national security and appropriations, along with leadership staff, will be briefed Friday afternoon in a classified setting by administration officials.

Some key members of Congress -- such as Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, a New York Democrat who is a member of the congressional Gang of Eight leaders, who are briefed on classified matters -- had not been made aware of the attack ahead of time. It's not clear how many other lawmakers had advance notice of the strike.

Sen. Ben Sasse, Republican of Nebraska, said in a news release that "General Soleimani is dead because he was an evil bastard who murdered Americans" and "the President made the brave and right call, and Americans should be proud of our servicemembers who got the job done."

Sasse added, "Tehran is on edge - the mullahs have already slaughtered at least a thousand innocent Iranians - and before they lash out further they should know that the U.S. military can bring any and all of these IRGC butchers to their knees."

His comments were echoed by Sen. Tom Cotton, Republican of Arkansas, who said in a statement that Soleimani "masterminded Iran's reign of terror for decades, including the deaths of hundreds of Americans."

"Tonight, he got what he richly deserved, and all those American soldiers who died by his hand also got what they deserved: justice," Cotton said. "America is safer now after Soleimani's demise."

Democrats pushed back on Republican sentiments about the attack, stressing the potential consequences and lambasting the decision to carry out the strike without congressional authorization.

Sen. Chris Murphy of Connecticut emphasized that Soleimani "was an enemy of the United States" in a tweet before stating, "The question is this - as reports suggest, did America just assassinate, without any congressional authorization, the second most powerful person in Iran, knowingly setting off a potential massive regional war?"

In a more explicit statement, Sen. Tom Udall of New Mexico said, "President Trump is bringing our nation to the brink of an illegal war with Iran without any congressional approval as required under the Constitution of the United States."

He added: "Such a reckless escalation of hostilities is likely a violation of Congress' war making authority -- as well as our basing agreement with Iraq -- putting U.S. forces and citizens in danger and very possibly sinking us into another disastrous war in the Middle East that the American people are not asking for and do not support."

CNN's Kareem Khadder reported from Baghdad. CNN's Hamdi Alkhshali reported and wrote in Atlanta. CNN's Steve Almasy, Nick Paton Walsh, Paul LeBlanc and Nic Robertson contributed to this report.

 

[Iwasamwillbe]

But remember guys Iran is supposed to be this yuge military threat to the US.