President Donald Trump speaks during a 'Evangelicals for Trump' campaign event on January 03, 2020 in Miami, Florida. (Photo: Joe Raedle/Getty Images)
Undermining White House's Public Line, US Officials Say Justification for Soleimani Assassination 'Razor Thin'
"They're lying to distract from impeachment. They're lying to get us to war. They're lying to shore up reelection. Don't buy any of it."
The Trump administration has publicly insisted that the U.S. assassination of Iranian military leader Qassem Soleimani was justified because he was planning "imminent attacks" against American forces and diplomats in the region, but the White House has yet to offer a shred of evidence substantiating this narrative.
That may be because, as New York Times reporter Rukmini Callimachi wrote in a detailed Twitter thread Saturday morning, the evidence is sparse to non-existent.
According to two U.S. officials who received intelligence briefings in the wake of Soleimani's assassination, which was ordered by President Donald Trump, "the evidence suggesting there was to be an imminent attack on American targets is 'razor thin,'" Callimachi reported.
"In fact the evidence pointing to that came as three discrete facts," Callimachi wrote. Those three facts, according to Callimachi, were Soleimani's "pattern of travel," his request for the Iranian Supreme Leader's approval for an unspecified "operation," and Iran's supposed "increasingly bellicose position towards American interests in Iraq."
"As one source put it, a) + b) + c) is hardly evidence of an imminent attack on American interests that could kill hundreds, as the White House has since claimed," Callimachi wrote. "The official describes the reading of the intelligence as an illogical leap."
Callimachi closed her viral Twitter thread by raising a question about the timing of Soleimani's assassination.
"Why now?" she asked. "Hard to decouple his killing from the impeachment saga."
CNN legal analyst Susan Hennessey said in response to Callimachi's tweets that "if this thread is accurate then both the policy and legal justifications for the strike [are] about to crumble."
Yale Law School professor Oona Hathaway, an expert in international law, echoed Hennessey:
Ezra Levin, co-executive director of progressive advocacy group Indivisible, put it more bluntly: "They're lying to distract from impeachment. They're lying to get us to war. They're lying to shore up reelection. Don't buy any of it."
Trump, in remarks to reporters Friday, claimed Soleimani was plotting "sinister" attacks on Americans, parroting Secretary of State Mike Pompeo's claim that the Iranian general "was actively plotting in the region to take actions... that would have put dozens if not hundreds of American lives at risk."
"But we caught him in the act," Trump said. "Under my leadership, America's policy is unambiguous towards terrorists. We will find you, we will eliminate you."
During a press briefing on Friday, State Department officials repeatedly declined to offer specific details about the supposed intelligence on these "imminent" attacks that purportedly led Trump to order the strike on Soleimani, which also killed a prominent Iraqi militia leader.
One official chafed at a question that likened the Trump administration's claims about Iran to the Bush administration's falsehoods in the build-up to the 2003 invasion of Iraq.
"You're not going to make the Iraq comparison," the official said when asked why the White House's narrative about imminent Iranian attacks should be believed.
After reading a transcript of the State Department briefing, Ploughshares Fund president Joe Cirincione said he "could not believe the arrogance of the State officials."
"Insulting reporters, refusing to answer direct questions," Cirincione tweeted. "They did not provide one iota of evidence to back up their claims of imminent attack."
We are at a crossroads
This country and this world are at a monumental crossroads. In a few short weeks, US voters will have an opportunity to beat back the forces of fascism and confront the billionaires who are rigging the economy, our media system, and our democracy, making it increasingly impossible for ordinary people to get by. We’re not just talking about the election. We’re talking about what must be done once these fascist elements are vanquished from power. We need a bolder set of solutions than what either major party has so far been willing to offer and a working-class movement ready to fight like hell for it. Trump didn't emerge from nowhere. The conditions that fueled MAGA authoritarianism were created by decades of radical neoliberal economic policies and a corrupt political system dominated by corporate interests. They slashed taxes on the super-rich, promising that the benefits would trickle down. They said giveaways to the corporate titans would make life more affordable for the rest of us. It was all bullshit. And when a bitter, betrayed populace searches for someone to blame, right-wing demagogues have little trouble finding scapegoats. People know when they're being lied to, but you won't hear any of this from the corporate media. Only independent journalism—powered and funded by people who believe in building a better world—can deliver truly trustworthy daily news. Our Fall Campaign is underway, and we need your help. To power our newsroom through the rest of the year, we need to raise $125,000 by midnight on October 31. So if you share our vision, please contribute whatever you can to sustain our work. |
The Trump administration has publicly insisted that the U.S. assassination of Iranian military leader Qassem Soleimani was justified because he was planning "imminent attacks" against American forces and diplomats in the region, but the White House has yet to offer a shred of evidence substantiating this narrative.
That may be because, as New York Times reporter Rukmini Callimachi wrote in a detailed Twitter thread Saturday morning, the evidence is sparse to non-existent.
According to two U.S. officials who received intelligence briefings in the wake of Soleimani's assassination, which was ordered by President Donald Trump, "the evidence suggesting there was to be an imminent attack on American targets is 'razor thin,'" Callimachi reported.
"In fact the evidence pointing to that came as three discrete facts," Callimachi wrote. Those three facts, according to Callimachi, were Soleimani's "pattern of travel," his request for the Iranian Supreme Leader's approval for an unspecified "operation," and Iran's supposed "increasingly bellicose position towards American interests in Iraq."
"As one source put it, a) + b) + c) is hardly evidence of an imminent attack on American interests that could kill hundreds, as the White House has since claimed," Callimachi wrote. "The official describes the reading of the intelligence as an illogical leap."
Callimachi closed her viral Twitter thread by raising a question about the timing of Soleimani's assassination.
"Why now?" she asked. "Hard to decouple his killing from the impeachment saga."
CNN legal analyst Susan Hennessey said in response to Callimachi's tweets that "if this thread is accurate then both the policy and legal justifications for the strike [are] about to crumble."
Yale Law School professor Oona Hathaway, an expert in international law, echoed Hennessey:
Ezra Levin, co-executive director of progressive advocacy group Indivisible, put it more bluntly: "They're lying to distract from impeachment. They're lying to get us to war. They're lying to shore up reelection. Don't buy any of it."
Trump, in remarks to reporters Friday, claimed Soleimani was plotting "sinister" attacks on Americans, parroting Secretary of State Mike Pompeo's claim that the Iranian general "was actively plotting in the region to take actions... that would have put dozens if not hundreds of American lives at risk."
"But we caught him in the act," Trump said. "Under my leadership, America's policy is unambiguous towards terrorists. We will find you, we will eliminate you."
During a press briefing on Friday, State Department officials repeatedly declined to offer specific details about the supposed intelligence on these "imminent" attacks that purportedly led Trump to order the strike on Soleimani, which also killed a prominent Iraqi militia leader.
One official chafed at a question that likened the Trump administration's claims about Iran to the Bush administration's falsehoods in the build-up to the 2003 invasion of Iraq.
"You're not going to make the Iraq comparison," the official said when asked why the White House's narrative about imminent Iranian attacks should be believed.
After reading a transcript of the State Department briefing, Ploughshares Fund president Joe Cirincione said he "could not believe the arrogance of the State officials."
"Insulting reporters, refusing to answer direct questions," Cirincione tweeted. "They did not provide one iota of evidence to back up their claims of imminent attack."
The Trump administration has publicly insisted that the U.S. assassination of Iranian military leader Qassem Soleimani was justified because he was planning "imminent attacks" against American forces and diplomats in the region, but the White House has yet to offer a shred of evidence substantiating this narrative.
That may be because, as New York Times reporter Rukmini Callimachi wrote in a detailed Twitter thread Saturday morning, the evidence is sparse to non-existent.
According to two U.S. officials who received intelligence briefings in the wake of Soleimani's assassination, which was ordered by President Donald Trump, "the evidence suggesting there was to be an imminent attack on American targets is 'razor thin,'" Callimachi reported.
"In fact the evidence pointing to that came as three discrete facts," Callimachi wrote. Those three facts, according to Callimachi, were Soleimani's "pattern of travel," his request for the Iranian Supreme Leader's approval for an unspecified "operation," and Iran's supposed "increasingly bellicose position towards American interests in Iraq."
"As one source put it, a) + b) + c) is hardly evidence of an imminent attack on American interests that could kill hundreds, as the White House has since claimed," Callimachi wrote. "The official describes the reading of the intelligence as an illogical leap."
Callimachi closed her viral Twitter thread by raising a question about the timing of Soleimani's assassination.
"Why now?" she asked. "Hard to decouple his killing from the impeachment saga."
CNN legal analyst Susan Hennessey said in response to Callimachi's tweets that "if this thread is accurate then both the policy and legal justifications for the strike [are] about to crumble."
Yale Law School professor Oona Hathaway, an expert in international law, echoed Hennessey:
Ezra Levin, co-executive director of progressive advocacy group Indivisible, put it more bluntly: "They're lying to distract from impeachment. They're lying to get us to war. They're lying to shore up reelection. Don't buy any of it."
Trump, in remarks to reporters Friday, claimed Soleimani was plotting "sinister" attacks on Americans, parroting Secretary of State Mike Pompeo's claim that the Iranian general "was actively plotting in the region to take actions... that would have put dozens if not hundreds of American lives at risk."
"But we caught him in the act," Trump said. "Under my leadership, America's policy is unambiguous towards terrorists. We will find you, we will eliminate you."
During a press briefing on Friday, State Department officials repeatedly declined to offer specific details about the supposed intelligence on these "imminent" attacks that purportedly led Trump to order the strike on Soleimani, which also killed a prominent Iraqi militia leader.
One official chafed at a question that likened the Trump administration's claims about Iran to the Bush administration's falsehoods in the build-up to the 2003 invasion of Iraq.
"You're not going to make the Iraq comparison," the official said when asked why the White House's narrative about imminent Iranian attacks should be believed.
After reading a transcript of the State Department briefing, Ploughshares Fund president Joe Cirincione said he "could not believe the arrogance of the State officials."
"Insulting reporters, refusing to answer direct questions," Cirincione tweeted. "They did not provide one iota of evidence to back up their claims of imminent attack."