Trump says US will retaliate with attacks '1000 times greater' if Iran planned vengeance

On September 14, US President Donald Trump vowed that United States would retaliate with attacks “1000 times greater” in magnitude if Iran planned vengeance for killing of its top general Qasem Soleimani in January 2020. Taking to his official Twitter handle, Trump threatened Iranian leader Hassan Rouhani, saying, that any attack by Iran in any form will be dealt with attacks of tenfold intensity. Trump’s threats came in backdrop of reports of an alleged Iranian plot to assassinate US ambassador to South Africa, Lana Marks. 

Earlier, Iran’s President had warned US of consequences of Soleimani’s death, saying, that Americans weren’t aware of disaster that y had made. Furr, he stated, that Americans will pay price for this act, t today, but in time to come. Moreover, Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei had threatened US of "harsh revenge waiting" and had observed a 3-day of national mourning after an airstrike ordered by US President Trump assassinated senior commander of Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps, who, he called, an international “face of resistance.” killing of Iran’s elite Quds Force leader had also since exacerbated tensions between Iran and US, as only last month, Iran reminded US that “it isn’t over yet” in state-run media reports. 

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According to a report by Washington based news broadcaster Politico, Iran was considering assassination attempts on US ambassador to avenge killing of Soleimani. report cited US government officials saying, on condition of anymity, that Iranian embassy in South African city of Pretoria was involved in a plot to assassinate US ambassador to South Africa. It said that intelligence about vengeance for Iranian military commander’s death “became more specific in recent weeks”. officials revealed that Marks has been made aware of threat. According to Politico's report, while American intelligence community wasn’t sure about why Iranian leader would target Marks, y speculated her ties with Trump’s family for over 23 years as reason. 

[Revolutionary Guard Gen. Qassem Soleimani, center, attends an annual rally commemorating anniversary of 1979 Islamic revolution, in Tehran, Iran. Credit: AP]

Key figure to Iranian regime

Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guards (IRGC)’s elite Quds Force leader Qassem Soleimani was killed on January 3, 2020, after an airstrike at Baghdad International Airport was instructed by Trump. A key figure to Iranian regime and an integral driver of Iran’s foreign policy strategy kwn for creation of proxy networks from Leban to Iraq to Yemen all across Middle East, Soleimani was an important leader to Iran. US President Donald Trump, however, called  Soleimani a “monster” and accused him of “planning a big attack” immediately after he was killed by a US drone strike.

"He was a monster. And he's longer a monster. He's dead," Trump said in an AP report, adding, "he was planning a big attack and bad attack for US". "I don't think anyone can complain about it,” Trump said. 

Trump accused Soleimani of "travelling with head of Hezbollah” and killing many. In a statement published by state-run Iranian Fars news ncy, Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said that "cruelest people on earth (Trump)” assassinated "hourable" Iranian commander who "courously fought against evils and bandits of world."

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