it was the hometown of qasem soleimani. the e supreme leader of iriran, ayatollah khamenei, has dececlad three days of mourning and hasas vowed d to take what he calls severe revenge. reporter: with the blue and red --hts flashing, and it was and arrive at baghdad international airport, the scene of the deadly missile attack. these are the firirst photos of the damage caused by the u.s. airstrikes which have killed seveveral people includiding g l qasesem soleimanani, the leaderf the elite quds force, and the deputy c commander of the tehran-backed militias known as the popular mobilization forces. cells said that the airstrikes struck near the cargo terminal with one senior politician adding that the airstrike occurred as soon as soleimani stepped off the plane which had brought him from either lebanon or syria. his body was apparently identified by the ring he was wearing. in response, the u.s. president has simply tweeted an image of ,he stars & stripes flag while the pentagon says donald trump personally ordered the kil

qassem soleimani was no ordinary foe. for a generation, he was probably america's most capable enemy. his death delivers a blow to the heart of the iranian regime. for many years, soleimani built up iran's power outside its borders and made it — and himself — a major player in iraq, syria and lebanon. he was a talisman for iranian hardliners, who've been rocked to their core. they'll want to get even, perhaps more than that. last sunday, american air strikes killed 25 members of an iraqi militia armed and trained by soleimani's quds organisation — after an american contractor was killed in a militia attack. the militiamen — undoubtedly on it soleimani's orders — marched on the us embassy in baghdad and attacked its perimeter. the militias he created were a vital part of the fight against thejihadists of islamic state, but they're also one way that iran projects power abroad. the huge american compound is a fortress and it wasn't breached, but the attacks goaded and threatened the trump administration. the americ

who exactly is qasem soleimani? the history of iran's most powerful general. >> reporter: qasem soleimani was known as the shadow commanded because of the long shadow he cast outside iran's borders without anyone knowing much about him. here's what we know about him. the 62-year-old was designated a terrorist by the us in 2005 but he has been the leader of iran's delete intelligence wing since 1998. the special force quietly operated iranian proxy campaigns made of 20,000 militia fighters across the middle east and some analysts say he was attempting to spread iran's islamic revolution from baghdad to damascus and all the way to beirut where they would be considered a direct threat to israel. qasem soleimani is responsible for killing 600 american troops during the iraq war. to put that into perspective, 17% of all us deaths in iraq from 2003-2011 were orchestrated by this man. >> is responsible for killing many americans. i would say the last two years i was here the majority of our casualties came from the surroga

qassim soleimani is somebody who is well-known in russia. he's sum here a couple times to deal with issues like arms procurement, foreign policy, coordination on the ground between russian and iranian military personnel in syria. and so, it's entirely expected that the news that he'd been killed by the united states would be criticized by russia. and there have been some very sharp and critical comments issued by various departments of the russian administration, the russian foreign minister, saying russia's mood is fraught. and the russia defense ministry saying the act was short-sighted and will bring consequences to the entire international security system. i mean, blah the russians are most concerned about is that this could launch a spiral of retaliation which draws the united states and iran into a direct confrontation, which could lead to the iranian government being toppled. regime change taking place. the russians have seen it take place in iraq, in libya, in other countries awell where they've been closely aligned to. you can city

decided to kill soleimani now. nick, there are likely to have been opportunities in the past for the u.s. to target iran's military chief. they didn't, so why now? >> well, clearly they publicly say that the case was the disputable, that they could not abide taking the risk of allowing him to continue with the plans they say were imminent against u.s. assets in the region here. now, they won't really go into exactly the level of detail these u.s. officials who have been briefing on this topic about where the plots precisely were aimed, how lethal they were. a senior state department official said they were concerned about attacks potentially in iraq, syria and lebanon against u.s. diplomatic and military personnel. now, in syria they really only have military personnel and in here in lebanon they really only have a dip plumatic presence at the embassy in beirut. so you get a possible idea as to what may have been the focus here in lebanon, certainly. but there's a big amount the u.s. simply won't say, and that is t

rob: qasem soleimani breaking down who qasem soleimani was and why his death is so important. jillian: democrats already counting on the president's move. let's begin in jordan with the latest. what can you tell us? >> reporter: overnight the united states assassinating the leader of iran's revolutionary guard qasem soleimani. this is a major development in the region. we talked a lot yesterday about iran and the united states preparing for a direct military confrontation. this conflict has entered a new phase. after last night, drone strike targeted a car outside baghdad international airport that qasem soleimani was riding in. additionally a senior official in a top iranian militia targeted and killed outside the airport last night. today iran vowing to respond, rouhani tweeting out the great nation of iran will take revenge for what he is calling a heinous crime. the ayatollah implementing a 3 day morning period vowing to respond. qasem soleimani responsible for a number of proxies in places like lebanon, the gaza strip, iraq and syria so his death is a major escalation and

tehran had cultivated soleimani's image at home. the supreme leader, in a rare display, awarded him high military honors. the regime was reinforcing his status as not just a war hero but a national hero. there is no one with his iconic status waiting in the wings to replace him. iran is weakened without him. they have replaced him with his deputy but he doesn't appear to have that same charisma. think of soleimani in this wa, , he was the point man from tehran to moscow to convince the russians to get involved in the war in syria. he wasn't just a battlefield commander. he was so much more. >> nick robertson, thank you so much. let's talk further about all of this now with cnn contributor and co-author of the book "agent storm", tim lister with me now. good to see you, tim. just on that point that nick made, what kind of impact might the killing of soleimani have on the entire region since he was involved in so many things? >> i think a huge impact because there was no one quite like him in the iranian apparatus. he had been the lea

qasem soleimani. so his brazen assassination at the baghdad airport, while he was with other shia militia leaders, now opens a number of questions. how will iran respond? and iranian officials have already said they're going to respond. the new replacement for qasem soleimani said that they will be -- be patient i think was the quote. there will be bodies of americans in the middle east. so they are -- they are promising blood for blood. but it's unclear when. it's unclear how. most likely, carried out by one of its proxies but not necessarily. iran has some capacity to act unilaterally. but it could be just threats. it could be posturing. iran could decide to -- the best approach is to serve revenge as -- as a cold dish. so we -- we will really see over the next, i think, 24 to 48 hours. officially, this is what is supposed to happen. tomorrow, in baghdad, there is an official mourning ceremony. they're going to have the bodies. there are going to be a lot of militiamen out on the streets. the embass

soleimani was a well-known figure in russia. he was the point man on the ground in syria, in charge of iranian forces and iranian proxies that the russians would have dealt with regularly. and his killing would have created a vacuum in syria, where russia is engaged in the civil conflict there, to back its ally, the president of syria, bashar al assad. that's a vacuum that the russians may fill and use it to tighten their grip on the leads of power in syria. it's li ee's likely to be tempo. soleimani was a sovereign-backed man of power. he had a deputy. the deputy replaced him in the leadership. any hiatus in places like syria, will be short-lived. >> what goes on in the middle east doesn't stay in the middle east, of course. matthew chance, in moscow. thank you. >>> all right. still to come on the program, we will continue our special coverage of the killing of qasem soleimani. first, a stranger changing course on how it's responding to the worst wildfires in decades. we'll be in one of the worst-hit areas as flame inch closer

has had a number of opportunities to go after soleimani. you said that you reread the article that general stanley mcchrystal wrote a year ago saying that he had a shot at soleimani back in 2007. he opted out of that. maybe he's questioning that. i'm quoting here. he said and he's writing, all - >> your thoughts on this kind of back and forth and whether he should have been targeted in the past, michael. >> a great article, trace, by general mcchrystal that affected the ambivalence that a lot of decision makers lad a chance to take a shot at soleimani. as the american of americans that are dead because of weaponry shipped into iraq or elsewhere from the quds force that soleimani headed, as these transgressions mount up in number and the amount of blood spilled got to the point that we felt we couldn't take it any longer. obviously the recent attacks on u.s. bases in iraq and the pros respects of more in the future became a tipping point for president trump. i'm not a big fan of president trump's foreign policy but i don't disagree with this

who was qasem soleimani? >> reporter: i think that description kind of comes from the consistent nature of qasem soleimani's presence here over the decades. not only fought in the iran and iraq war, but then found itself it seems supplying technology from iran that assisted the insurgents in iraq against the u.s. military presence there, even possibly in afghanistan too. that is where you get that sort of career sense of enmity from many u.s. officials who speak about qasem soleimani. the head of the quds force, the foreign part if you like of the islamic revolutionary guard corps of iran. the people who essentially were tasked with going abroad to fulfill iran's policy objectives in the region. very successful frankly, bringing iran to -- at the height of its powers for quite some time in about sort of 2015 or '16 or so. then also, too, being part of the iranian bid to assist iraq and parts of the syrian regime too in pushing back isis in that fight as well. so a man of incredible influence, operating in the

he has killed soleimani. there are a lot of people at the pentagon and the white house patting themselves on the back and president trump has taken a victory lap with supporters saying he killed the al qaeda leader and the isis leader and now he killed this iranian top general, so he's the one with bringing decisiveness back to america and pride back to america and there are plenty in the middle east who say that they don't know where this is going to go, that iran is going to respond, at a time and in a way of its choosing, and that might be now, and it might be in a year, we really don't know. and it could be cyber. it could be through one of the mish yas. this he could try to take an attack on a u.s. naval vessel. could, could, could, could. we frankly don't know. and i think that's why, when iran says maybe it is one of these misha, we can't take responsibility. we can be unpredictable, too. they're deliberately selling that ambiguity about how and when they respond. >> absolutely. and overwhelmingly, we

that killed soleimani and nine others. meanwhile, soleimani's body returned to his home country of iran today. thousands of mourners filled the streets, and outrage was also felt in iran's parliament. lawmakers were seen chanting, death to america, during a session in tehran. iranian officials are telling cnn that they are planning a response to the u.s. against military sites. this as president trump is warning against any iranian retaliation. in a series of tweets, president trump revealed that the u.s. is prepared to target 52 iranian sites, some of which hold cultural significance. the warning comes as his administration faces questions here in the u.s. about the timing of the attack on soleimani, and if trump was planning or, rather, if soleimani was planning an imminent attack himself, which the u.s. secretary of state mike pompeo did not answer completely this morning when he spoke to cnn's "state of the union." >> if you're an american in the region, days and weeks, this is not something that's relevant. we have to

but given that israel held soleimani responsible for iran's aggression, its strategy in syria, soleimani was really public enemy number one for israel. >> yeah. who knew what and when? oran, thank you for that. oren is on the israeli/lebanese border as we keep our eye or eyes on funeral processions in iraq. our special coverage of the killing of iran's qasem soleimani continues. my colleague senior international correspondent sam kiley with me here in abu dhabi for analysis. what does happen next? that up after this. balances skin's microbiome. so skin looks like this and you feel like this. aveeno® skin relief. get skin healthy™ here, it all starts withello! hi!... how can i help? a data plan for everyone. everyone? everyone. let's send to everyone! wifi up there? uhh. sure, why not? how'd he get out?! a camera might figure it out. that was easy! glad i could help. at xfinity, we're here to make life simple. easy. awesome. so come ask, shop, discover at your local xfinity store today. supporters of the iranian military commander and others killed in a u.s. strike on friday are gather

there are so many areas where qasem soleimani was present and there was a lwa ys soleimani was present and there was always an airof soleimani was present and there was always an air of mystery around him. whenever there was a major operation, you would see on social media saying, where is qasem soleimani? and he would suddenly appear taking selfies with chips at the front and he would send barbs on social media, sometimes seeming to almost taunt the united states and even president trump directly as if to say, come and get me. and it wasn't just on the to say, come and get me. and it wasn'tjust on the military battlefield. in iran, he was a significant political force, seen as second only to the all—powerful supreme leader ayatollah khamenei. he was in effect iran's real foreign minister when it came to matters of war or peace across the region. lyse, thank you very much. that was our international correspondent in kabul. we have just our international correspondent in kabul. we havejust had our international correspondent in kabul. we have just had a statement from the labour leade

he knows all the people that qasem soleimani knows. so, those operational tactics are still very much in force. and alex, we're seeing a lot of telltale signs that revevlg is being plotted by iran, that they want to get -- they want to strike back for qasem soleimani's death. the head of the irgc said that the united states is going to pay a grave price for killing qasem soleimani and that they made a strategic mistake taking him out. and very interestingly, alex, just hours ago i saw footage of a mosque in iran's holiest city. there's a mosque there and above that mosque always flies a blue flag symbolizing one of their imams. today, over that mosque, a red flag had been hoisted up, and in shia culture, that red flag symbolizes revenge. in all the years i've been here, i've never seen anything like that. so, the messages are coming across that some sort of retribution for the united states is coming. now, iran usually keeps its powder dry. they play the long game. so, whether that will be imminent or whether it will be a more long-ter

today, iran's supreme leader appointed this man, soleimani's former deputy, as soleimani's successor. he had been working alongside soleimani for the past 20 years. joining me now, a former cia officer, national security council during the obama administration and a steven cook. welcome to both of you, ge gentlem gentlemen. what kind of intelligence would the white house would have had that would lead to this kind of attack? >> right, so the targeting package was at the heart of the drone attack and i won't get into specifics about that. knowing someone is in a country verses knowing someone is at a specific location or at a specific time inside that country are two different pieces of the intelligence and requiring a lot more people to be involved and put together those packages. the white house, and defenses, i believe who carried this out would have access to that level of details. >> joel, in this case, it was not soleimani was living in hiding, you know the way of osama bin laden was. he was out in the public and a small entourage. >> that's right. he was not in hiding like baghd

his name, qasem soleimani. iran's top military commander killed in a drone strike and iran is now vowing harsh revenge. secretary of state mike pompeo has been spending the day taking phone calls with counter parts in the region including a senior

they've already announced a successor to soleimani. they say they will continue to operate exactly the same way they operated before. but, of course, for the time being if you look at tehran and other places as well, it really is public mourning you're seeing from a lot of iranians, of course, very much from the iranian leadership as well. qasem soleimani's body going to make its way through various places in iran. we expect to see more people coming out on the streets and mourning the death of this head of the revolutionary guard's quds force. >> fred politicen in iran, thank you very much. >>> i want to bring in cnn comment tart and former congressman mike rogers who served as chairman of the house intelligence committee. he was a member of the gang of eight, which is that group of lawmakers typically briefed ahead of operations like this. congressman, thank you very much for joining me today. before i ask you some questions, i want to play some sound, some of the assurances we've been hearing from both secretary of state mike pompeo

soleimani, so he's someone who's beenin soleimani, so he's someone who's been in the islamic revolutionary guard corps for a number of years now since the beginning, essentially, and who has been involved in various operations in iran and the border regions in iran, and throughout the region. so, he is very well—versed in the operations and strategies are pursued by the islamic revolutionary guard corps, and in particular iran more generally. so i think that this will bea generally. so i think that this will be a fairly smooth transition. that said, ithink be a fairly smooth transition. that said, i think it's also important to recognise that he doesn't have the same name recognition, the same charisma, the same relationships that soleimani has, so there will be a bit ofa that soleimani has, so there will be a bit of a learning curve, but i expect it to be a fairly smooth transition for him a. let's take a look at some of the other stories making the news. indonesian authorities are turning to the technique of cloud seeding to try to stop more rain falling in the flood—hit capitaljakar

officials saw soleimani's handiwork. his power made iranians proud today iranians in the thousands came out to show their love and their anger. soleimani was arguably iran's mose shadows and he spilled he was the secret architect of a long campaign against u.s. troops in iraq after the 2003 invasion, killing hundreds back then his face was barely known, but over the last few years soleimani has gotten bolder, showing photographs of himself on battlefields around the middle east, issuing statements his pride and increasing profile may have made him easier to track down and kill there was talk in iran soleimani might be a future president or perhaps even a supreme leader today the man who has that role, iran's top ayatollah, visited soleimani's family and promised severe revenge. the most immediate co idad where shiite militia leaders loyal to soleimani the same militias that for days attacked the u.s. embassy will take to the streets tomorrow is hearing d show late word of another airstrike. richard, what do we know >> re

because the goal of iran, of soleimani, was not only a security goal. i mean, you keep telling me about all the concerns you had as ambassador, and that continue, about iran's various leverages inside iraq. is it not your concern and the truth that the killing of qasem soleimani has actually strengthened iran's hand in iraq? it has made it much more difficult for your us troop presence to continue. it has made it more difficult for those allies of the united states inside iraq to have their voices heard. and what we see is an iran which over the next few months and years has every prospect of projecting more power and control over iraq. what i think the killing of qasem soleimani has done has a short—term impact that is sort of what you describe. it is clear that those in iraq who would like to see a continuation, an increase, of iranian influence in the country now have more enthusiasm for that point. it also has a short—term benefit to — or i should say provides an opportunity to an iraqi government that wants to be more independent of tehran, a

that is the case for qasem soleimani, who is the case for qasem soleimani, who is normally based in iran. david willis, interesting to speak to you. thank you. let's speak now to our chief international correspondent, lyse doucet. thank you forjoining us. obviously big making news, there is. how significant is the story, do you think, for us — iran relations and the region at large? it is impossible to exaggerate the significance of the killing of qasem soleimani, the head of iran's elite quds force. there is already a major and growing crisis between iran and the us, which is playing out in an ever more volatile region. the killing of their top commander for iran would have been a red line. in iran would have been a red line. in iran he is regarded as the most significant personality beneath iran's all—powerful supreme leader, ayatolla h iran's all—powerful supreme leader, ayatollah muhammad ali. there are so many ways in which qasem soleimani has been described in the middle east, and certainly by cia officials, as the most powerful operative in the region. he was seen as the mas

do you really believe that the killing of soleimani -- general soleimani here in the balance is going to save lives as those who have defended the president's action have said? >> well, there is a possibility that it could both save lives and at the same time cost other lives, and there's no doubt that qasem soleimani, for many years, was a key actor in the attacks on not just americans but syrians, lebanese, iraqis and iranians, and he's got lots of blood on his hands, and the -- we can debate the justification for killing him and the way that the trump administration did, but at the same time, we have to look at the administration's rationale and listen to when they say that they believe that this act will de-escalate the crisis and then look at what's going on in the region and have a safe prediction that actually this act will escalate the crisis and what we see in terms of the reaction in iraq, in iran and all over the region is a promise of revenge, a promise of retaliation. so, it's not about, you know, whether or not this was -- we had the right to do this. it's about whether

this is all soleimani's handwork. then we watch and see what's continuing the terror campaign in the region. we know what happened at the end of last year in december. ultimately leading to the death of an american. if you are looking for immanence, look no further. than the days that led up to the strike that was taken against soleimani. then in addition to that, you have what were continuing efforts on behalf of this terrorist to build out a network of campaigns that would lead potentially to the death of many more americans. it was the right decision. we got it right. the department of defense did excellent work and the president had an entirely legal, appropriate and a basis, as well as a decision that fit perfectly within our strategy and how to counter the threat of malign activity from iran more broadly. reporter: two questions. iran's foreign affairs minister granted an interview saying that soleimani was on a diplomatic visit to iraq and that the u.s. strike to take him out was state terrorism. that president

>> so let's not underestimate soleimani's role. he was obviously a mastermind and played a crucial part. in what this network of shiia militia became. he was not the only person. there was an organization. he created the organization. it will survive his death. and just ask the israelis who tried time and again to get rid of the leadership of hezbollah, hamas, and similar organizations. they are replaceable even if you get rid of the person who seems irreplaceable, ultimately the organization survives. which raises another question about why we think this is really going to lead to a safer region. you get rid of soleimani, you embolden or you motivate the people behind them to try to retaliate and he will be ultimately replaced. >> appreciate both of you joining us. i enjoyed that discussion. >>> up next congress is back in session facing crises abroad and impeachment apparently in limbo here at home. what are the chances for a quick ending to the impasse over that impending impeachment trial? you're watching "hardball." that's why

the invasion helped soleimani to consolidate control and his home base in iran was soleimani was head of the elite branch of the quds force to iraq where he directed iranian backed militias and imported bombs responsible for the deaths of hundreds of americans. in syria he was largely responsible for the survival of bashar al assad providing troops and supplies and in lebanon he helped develop and prop up the group and in yemen in the devastating civil war which has been first and foremost ruthlessly pursued by saudi arabia, soleimani helped prop up the houthi rebels. the person overseeing this whole project of extending the force with qassem soleimani and now the united states has killed him. i'm joined by by dexter. what was the quds force and the role soleimani played? >> it was huge. it all goes back to the end of the iranian iraq war. a million people dead in that war. >> a complete -- house for everyone involved. >> totally. and at the end of that war it basically ended as a stalemate and the iranians said we're not going to let that happen again and essentially created what you

soleimani is a bad actor. soleimani killed americans. debate.ot the the debate is whether america another war in the middle east or whether we a real e focused on competition which is china. world's g.d.p.he china, our competition for the 15%.century, is g.d.p. .44% of china hasn't been in a war since 1979. 40 conflicts. future historians will ask, why ere we so obsessed with a region, the middle east, 3.5% of .d.p., when we should be focused on investing in our country to build the future to century?1st i don't think staying out of bad wars that cost this country of dollars is a democratic issue or a republican issue. rankly, the president ran on this. and my hope -- i know leader for thy says this is a malt. under the -- formality. powers act we are supposed to have a concurrent resolution. i yield the gentleman another 15 seconds. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. khanna: i appreciate that. final point. this shouldn't be partisan. here's what i would love to see. says in future -- in the future he won't get int

that's why the killing of qassem soleimani was such a shock. not because soleimani was a good guy. just the opposite. he had the blood of many americans on his hands. he was a hardened terrorist. democrats and republicans alike know the world is better off without him, but killing him was a massive escalation. those two wrongly view him as a martyr have already used his death as pretext for violence and retribution. americans have been warned to leave iraq and have been threatened with kidnapping. iranian missiles have struck bases where americans are stationed. thousands more men and women in uniform have been deployed to the region. the iraqi parliament has asked our troops to leave the country. even though we rely on that partnership in the fight against isis. fortunately, for the moment, both the administration and the iranians have taken a step back. but we have to ask, why was it worth turning the simmer up to a boil? that's where things start to get confusing. at first, the administration said there was an imminent threat. why is that important? because in the case of an imm

the invasion helped soleimani to consolidate control and his home base in iran was soleimani was head of the elite branch of the revolution guard on the quds force to iraq where he directed iranian-backed militias and imported bombs responsible for the deaths of hundreds of americans. he also had a huge say in who will become the new iraqi government. in syria he was largely responsible for the survival of brutal strong man bashar al assad providing troops and supplies that helped him back a civil war and rebellion. in lebanon he helped develop and prop up the militant group hezbollah and in yemen in the devastating civil war which has been first and foremost ruthlessly pursued and prosecuted by saudi arabia, soleimani helped prop up the houthi rebels as part of a proxy war against the saudis. the person overseeing this whole project of extending the iranian force is qassem soleimani and now the united states has killed him. no one is entirely sure what comes next. i'm joined by dexter whose new piece is about the posed dangers of killing him. what was the quds force and the role sole

should have killed general soleimani a long time ago. was that ever under serious consideration during your tenure during the obama administration? >> during my tenure as national security advisor we didn't have the opportunity, to my knowledge. had we had the opportunity, we would have given it obviously very careful consideration weighing the pros and the cons. frankly, then as now, it's not clear that when you look at the strategic landscape and the costs and consequences of such an action whether the benefits outweigh the real risks. the most important thing, wolf, we took these serious situations under careful consideration. we would way deliberately the risks and benefits and considered the second and third order consequences and most importantly, we would have made very sure before we took such an action that would undoubtedly lead to escalation we put in place preparations to protect and defend american personnel in the region. >> you new clearly, qasem soleimani was responsible for hundreds of deaths of u.s. military personnel i

for the past 11 years soleimani operated -- in that role, soleimani was believed to be a patron of the shia militia that attacked u.s. troops during the iraq war he appeared he was also a major player in syria during their civil war as well as in the campaign against isis. he was little known to the american public, soleimani was among the most famous living figures in iran a

thankful that general soleimani is no more. nbc news has not been able to independently verify this video. we don't know when and where it was taken. president trump had no words after the attack tweeting only this image of the u.s. flag. with us this morning we have washington anchor for bbc world news america katty cay. associate editor of "the washington post" and political analyst eugene robinson. columnist for the daily beast and coauthor of the best selling book "isis, inside the army of terror michael weiss. hans nichols in mar-a-lago. former allied commander, retired four star navy admiral, he's the chief international security and diplomacy analyst for nbc news and msnbc. and edward luce of the financial times. so, admiral, let's begin with you. the common reaction among policy officials, opinion leaders of the united states and across the west last night was that soleimani is a bad man with the blood of americans and other allies all over him. and, yet, many, many concerns about an escalating conflict with iran that c

custom soleimani was not ordinary foe. for generation, he was probably america's most capable enemy. hiseath delivers a blow to the heart of the iranian regime. in many years, soleimani built up iran's power and made himself a major player in iraq, syria, lebanon. they will want to get even, perhaps, more than that. less than it, american airstrikes killed 25 members of kataib, a malarkey -- an iraqi militia. after a contractor -- after an american contractor wa killed. they then marched tthe u.s. embassy. the malicious he created were a vital part of the fight against the jihadist state,ut there are one way that iran protects it abroad. theom huge americanund is a fortress and it was not breached, but the attacks goad it and threatened the trump administration. the americans rushed in reinforcements to the embassy. it isn't clear when the decision to assassinate soleimani was taken. once it hpened, president trump tweeted in triumph. general kass soleimani has killed or badly wounded thousands of americans over an extende

so would you consider soleimani a terrorist? >> look, there's no question he's a bad actor and he was involved in those kinds of attacks, but the real question that i think everyone has to ask is whether or not we have increased the chances of war with iran as a result of what happened. and i don't think there's any question the chances for war are more serious now than they have been in the last 40 years, that we could ultimately escalate what's happening now into a full-scale war with iran. >> secretary panetta, i appreciate your time. thank you. >> thank you. >> there's a lot more in the second live hour of "360." we have some top military minds joining us with their perspective on the strike and how the u.s. might prepare on what could be the next steps from iran. and a live report from the only western tv crew in iran tonight. that and more when we continue. for your worst sore throat pain, try vicks vapocool drops. it's not candy, it's powerful relief. ahhh vaporize sore throat pain with vicks vapocool drops and try new va

it don't like the orchestrator was qassem soleimani. what was sitting before us was in his travels thereof region an effort to make a significant strike against americans. there would have been many muslims killed, as well. iraqis, people in other countries come as well. it was a strike aimed at both disrupting that plot, deterring further aggression. we hope setting the conditions for distillation. >> sandra: congressman michael waltz a standby direction. with a closer look at who soleimani was. true youngsters reporting live from amman, jordan. trey >> good morning, major escalation overnight as the united states assassinated the top commander in the iranian army. this major escalation, as a drone fired at baghdad's international airport took out two vehicles, taking out eight people, including that top commander and also deputy commander and the iraqi-she a militia. after rising tensions this week, a seat on the u.s. embassy in baghdad that was a result of continued clashes between the iranians and the americans. the u.s. killing 25

soleimani was using a commercial jet. seems like he took precautions going to this trip in baghdad. >> trace, it's well-known this is a man that lived by the sword and expected to die by the sword. he had written a handwritten note to his wife setting out what his funeral should be like or what his burial site should be liked. he talked about it to his family coming out. so this is a guy that is -- he knew there was a target on his back. >> trace: we talked about it earlier. earlier this year or last year, the drone strike. the iran drone strike on the american drone, the attacking of the oil tankers and the oil fields. is it your opinion that the president holding restraint? >> not just president trump but success of american administrations have shown a great deal of patience. you know, a person of iranian heritage, it breaks my heart now considering what could happen if got forbid there's a outbreak of a serious conflict, that would mean for iran's security and territorial integrity. you know, what has to be made clear

soleimani was a u.s. adversary responsible for the deaths of american soldiers and his killing puts americans here and around the world in grave danger as iran vows revenge and harsh retaliation. and with news breaking today that more than 3,000 troops will be deployed to the region, there will be more u.s. troops potentially in danger. today donald trump speaking out just in the last hour hinting at what might have predicated the attack and trying to send a message of de-escalation. >> we caught him in the act and terminated him. under my leadership america's policy is unambiguous to terrorists who harm or intend to harm any american. we will find you, we will eliminate you, we will always prektd our diplomats, servicemembers, all americans and our allies. we took action last night to stop a war. we did not take action to start a war. we did not seek regime change. however, the iranian regime's aggression in the region including the use of proxy fighters to destabilize its neighbors must stand and it mus

soleimani was a designated terrorist. he was sanctioned by the u.s., the e.u., the united nations, and when nancy pelosi said that it was disproportionate -- >> laura: tonight. when she says tonight, needless provocations from the administration. at that point we didn't know if there were american casualties. >> i would like to ask her, at what point is it proportionate when you have 600 u.s. troops who get killed and thousands more that get wounded, and she calls it disproportionate to take out the person who is responsible for it customer to go one trip to walter reed where we serve with brian masse. you have these young men, young women who have their whole lives in front of them and because of soleimani, the end of wounded permanently. i'm happy he can rot in hell with al baghdadi bin laden. >> laura: i think nancy pelosi's comments were disgusting. disgusting. to in any way tiptoe to the edge of what trump did here. unbelievable. >> you and your last segment raised at the right question. what now customer quote is th

soleimani was our leader. now why was soleimani in iraq and the first place? you think may be to lead the efforts against our embassy, and to kill americans? and by the way, that would be why the president responded once that american contractor was, in fact, killed. military personnel were wounded. that happened a week ago. remember, it was soleimani responsible for over 600 deaths of american soldiers. many other injured, orchestrating attacks on coalition bases all over iraq hd beyond. he has done this for years. look at this, own state department, 17% of all deaths of u.s. personnel in iraq from 2003 to 2011 were orchestrated by soleimani. it was soleimani who reportedly helped plan the benghazi attack that killed four americans. soleimani has been feeling proxy conflicts and a reign of terror against the u.s. and their allies for decades. of course, backing anti-american militias in iraq, directing syria 'assad and his, don't forget the 1980s, he was backing militias that eventually took over lebanon as has below. he directed resources to hamas, places li

and he said soleimani was plotting attacks that would have killed americans. >> soleimani was plotting imminent and sinister attacks on american diplomats and military personnel. but we caught him in the act and terminated him. under my leadership, america's policy is unambiguous to terrorists who harm or intend to harm any american. we will find you. we will eliminate you. we will always protect our diplomats, service members, all americans, and our allies. >> you're looking at live pictures of the president speaking to evangelicals right now in miami where he just reiterated his claim that soleimani was preparing a major attack. but the trump administration has yet to release any evidence to back up those claims. iranian leaders have vowed revenge for the attack, although we don't know what exactly they're planning or when. but that warning has triggered security alerts at u.s. embassies across the middle east. the state department also is urging all americans to leave iraq. and amid the escalating tensions, the u.s. is deploying thousands more troops to the middle east. also, defens

soleimani is a bad actor. soleimani killed americans. debate.ot the the debate is whether america another war in the middle east or whether we a real e focused on competition which is china. world's g.d.p.he china, our competition for the 15%.century, is g.d.p. .44% of china hasn't been in a war since 1979. 40 conflicts. future historians will ask, why ere we so obsessed with a region, the middle east, 3.5% of .d.p., when we should be focused on investing in our country to build the future to century?1st i don't think staying out of bad wars that cost this country of dollars is a democratic issue or a republican issue. rankly, the president ran on this. and my hope -- i know leader for thy says this is a malt. under the -- formality. powers act we are supposed to have a concurrent resolution. i yield the gentleman another 15 seconds. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. khanna: i appreciate that. final point. this shouldn't be partisan. here's what i would love to see. says in future -- in the future he won't get int

qasem soleimani was the most powerful iranian general. it would be like iran killing the joint chief of staffs and bragging about it. americans would see it as an act of war. and the same goes here. it's not a question of if iran will respond and how and when. and i don't know if the decision has been made as of yet. there's no response yet. and we might not see a response in the next few days. it might take a few weeks or a few months. we don't know what the timeline is going to be. >> reviled in the west, soleimani was revered by many in iran and elsewhere. described in life as a living martyr by none less than the supreme leader himself. we have been, this morning, over the past hour or so, looking at images of a funeral possession, for soleimani and those who were killed in the u.s. attacks. how will he be remembered in iran? and what happens next? >> yes. many iranians have a positive image of kqasem soleimani. in the past few years when he was fighting isis, he was seen as the main defender of the country. and as a result, a lot of

air strike that killed general soleimani? our breaking news coverage continues right now. >>> welcome to our viewers in the united states and all around the world. this is a "new day." we do begin with breaking news. the state department is urging all americans in iraq to leave that country immediately. this is after president trump ordered the assassination of iran's top military and intelligence leader near the baghdad airport. this is some aftermath footage of that. general qasem soleimani was the commander of the quds force of the iran guard. that title does not explain what a huge role he played in the region. he was one of the most powerful men in iran. maybe the second most powerful man across the region. he was behind iran's military and intelligence strategy for the last several decades. imagine the head of the cia combined with the chair of the joints chief of staff combined with shadow secretary of state. he was that big. according to the united states, he was responsible for the deaths of hundreds of americans in

for the past 11 years soleimani operated -- in that role, soleimani was believed to be a patron of the shia militia that attacked u.s. troops during the iraq war he appeared he was also a major player in syria during their civil war as well as in the campaign against isis. he was little known to thehe american public, soleimani was among the most famous living figures in iran and also one of the most powerful. second only to the supreme leader.