Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei is reportedly looking to oust Maj. Gen. Ghasem Soleimani, one of the most powerful figures in Iran's Revolutionary Guard Corps and the commander of its black-ops arm, the Quds Force.
The Quds Force is the IRGC's elite division, responsible for its overseas operations. Quds Force troops are heavily involved in all of Iran's extraterritorial endeavors, most notably by training and supporting Hezbollah in Lebanon, Houthi rebels in Yemen and Shiite militias in Iraq and Syria.
According to a report in Iran's Arya news agency, Khamenei plans to remove Soleimani from the command he has held since 1998 over "strong differences of opinion" between Soleimani, Revolutionary Guards Commander Gen. Mohammad Ali Jafari and the Iranian chief of staff, Gen. Mohammad Bagheri.
The report was removed from Arya's website moments after it was posted on Friday, but it was still picked up by other Arab news outlets.
Some reports claimed that the discord between the three generals was severe enough for Khamenei to consider stripping Soleimani of his command, while others tied the potential move to a broader reform the supreme leader has said he would like to introduce into the Quds Force.
Still, some Arab media reports quoted Iranian sources as saying that Khamenei seeks to dismiss Soleimani over his alleged "corruption and lack of transparency."
Despite these rumors, the Tehran Times reported Saturday that Khamenei actually plans to promote Soleimani and name him Jafari's successor.
The Washington Post reported last week that in 2017, Qatar paid some $275 million to Iraqi and Iranian officials to secure the release of 25 Qatari nationals, including nine members of the royal family, who were abducted last year in southern Iraq.
According to the report, at least $50 million was paid directly to Soleimani.
