The targeted killing of Maj. Gen. Qassem Soleimani, commander of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps' elite Quds Force and one of the most influential people in Iran's top leadership echelon, was an unprecedented blow to Tehran's aspirations and an American declaration of war on the spread of the Islamic Republic throughout the Middle East.
In the past 10 years, the Quds Force leader has created a corridor controlled by Iran that extends through Baghdad, Damascus, and Beirut and was a key element in Iran's plan to become a regional superpower.
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Working thoroughly, carefully, and with plenty of personal charisma, Soleimani – the son of a poor farmer from western Iran – built a network of political alliances and won the main proxy wars in the Middle East to which he sent his fighters. Soleimani started his career as a young officer in the IRGC during the Iran-Iraq War. His heroism on the battlefield and his commitment made him a rising star.
In 1998, he was named commander of the Quds Force, the long arm of the IRGC that operates outside Iran. Under Soleimani, the forces became a prominent factor is nearly every conflict in the Middle East. In the past decade, Soleimani has organized and armed a successful rebellion by the Houthis in Yemen. When Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates invaded Yemen, the rebels held the capital of Sanaa and even fired Iranian-made missiles at Saudi cities.
In Iraq, Soleimani's people turned the Shiite government into a puppet of Tehran after the militias founded by the Quds Force helped the Iraqi army beat the Islamic State and push it out of Iraq. In Lebanon, Tehran's support for Hezbollah allowed Iran to entrench itself as a leading political force and pose a threat to Israel.
Because of Soleimani's achievements, devotion, and willingness to position himself in the heart of a battle, he became known among the Iraqi Shiites as "the living shahid [martyr]." Many in Iran saw him as the best choice to replace the reformist Hassan Rouhani as president.
While Soleimani's legacy will continue to inspire Iran in its battle against the United States, Israel, and Saudi Arabia for dominance in the Middle East, Iran has lost the man who symbolized its struggle and encapsulated its spirit.
