{"slug":"soleimani-assassination","title":"Assassination of Qasem Soleimani: Extrajudicial Killing Without Congressional Authorization","date":"2020-01-03","lastUpdated":"2020-01-03","description":"A U.S. drone strike at Baghdad International Airport killed Iranian Quds Force commander Qasem Soleimani on January 3, 2020. The strike was conducted without Congressional authorization, with disputed legal justification, and risked triggering a major regional war. Iran retaliated with ballistic missile strikes on U.S. bases in Iraq, injuring over 100 soldiers.","summary":"Trump ordered the killing of Iran's most senior military commander without consulting Congress and without a clear and credible imminent threat justification. The strike killed Soleimani and Iraqi militia commander Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis. Iran retaliated with ballistic missiles against U.S. forces in Iraq. The administration offered contradictory and later-disputed justifications for the 'imminence' of the claimed threat.","category":"extrajudicial-killing","severity":"extreme","ongoing":false,"sources":[{"url":"https://www.nytimes.com/2020/01/03/world/middleeast/qassem-soleimani-iran-iraq-strike.html","title":"Soleimani Dead: U.S. Strike Kills Top Iranian General in Baghdad","publisher":"The New York Times"},{"url":"https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-50979563","title":"Qasem Soleimani: US kills Iran's most powerful commander in Baghdad strike","publisher":"BBC News"},{"url":"https://foreignpolicy.com/2020/01/06/trump-soleimani-killing-legal-justification/","title":"The Legal Justification for the Soleimani Strike Is Thin — and Gets Thinner","publisher":"Foreign Policy"},{"url":"https://www.congress.gov/bill/116th-congress/house-concurrent-resolution/83","title":"H.Con.Res.83 — Directing the removal of United States Armed Forces from hostilities against Iran","publisher":"U.S. Congress"},{"url":"https://www.reuters.com/article/us-iran-iraq-idUSKBN1Z21YA","title":"Pentagon says Iran-backed attack prompted U.S. decision to kill Soleimani","publisher":"Reuters"},{"url":"https://www.un.org/press/en/2020/sc14110.doc.htm","title":"Security Council meeting on the situation in the Middle East — Soleimani killing","publisher":"UN Security Council"},{"url":"https://apnews.com/article/iran-trump-donald-trump-mike-pence-baghdad-dd78bbb3bd09793a741c0ec2e9e2a75e","title":"Pentagon says Iran-linked threat prompted US decision to kill Soleimani","publisher":"The Associated Press"}],"draft":false,"status":"published","tags":["extrajudicial-killing","Iran","drone-strike","first-term","war-powers","targeted-killing","Soleimani"],"relatedEntries":[],"timeline":[{"date":"2020-01-02","title":"Strike ordered","summary":"Trump approves the strike on Soleimani. Congressional leaders, including the Gang of Eight, are not notified in advance."},{"date":"2020-01-03","title":"Strike conducted","summary":"U.S. MQ-9 Reaper drones fire missiles at a convoy of vehicles leaving Baghdad airport, killing Soleimani, al-Muhandis, and seven others."},{"date":"2020-01-03","title":"Trump tweets justification","summary":"Trump tweets that Soleimani was 'directly and indirectly responsible for the deaths of millions of people' and was 'plotting imminent and sinister attacks.' No specific intelligence is provided to Congress or the public."},{"date":"2020-01-05","title":"Classified briefing criticized","summary":"Congressional members of both parties describe the classified briefing on the strike's justification as inadequate; Senator Mike Lee (R-UT) calls it 'probably the worst briefing I've seen, at least on a military issue.'"},{"date":"2020-01-08","title":"Iran retaliates with ballistic missiles","summary":"Iran fires more than a dozen ballistic missiles at Ain al-Asad air base in Iraq and a base in Erbil. Trump says the missiles caused 'no casualties' but the Pentagon later reports 110+ soldiers with traumatic brain injuries."},{"date":"2020-01-09","title":"Iraqi parliament votes to expel U.S. forces","summary":"Iraq's parliament votes in a non-binding resolution to expel U.S. troops from Iraqi territory. The U.S. rejects the demand."},{"date":"2020-01-09","title":"House passes War Powers resolution","summary":"The House passes a resolution requiring Trump to seek Congressional approval before further military action against Iran, 224-194."},{"date":"2020-07-07","title":"UN Special Rapporteur finds strike 'most likely' unlawful","summary":"UN Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial killings Agnes Callamard issues a report finding the strike most likely violated international law because no 'imminent attack' justifying preemptive self-defense was established."}],"location":{"name":"Baghdad International Airport, Iraq","lat":33.2625,"lng":44.2346},"custom":{"era":"first-term","posture":"reported","warCrimeClassification":"probable","internationalLaw":[{"statute":"UN Charter","article":"Article 2(4)","provision":"Prohibition on the threat or use of force against the territorial integrity of any state"},{"statute":"UN Charter","article":"Article 51","provision":"Self-defense exception requires an armed attack to have occurred or be genuinely imminent — disputed in this case"},{"statute":"International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights","article":"Article 6","provision":"Right to life — arbitrary killing by state agents prohibited; targeted killing of foreign government official requires extraordinary legal justification"},{"statute":"Geneva Conventions","article":"Common Article 3 / Additional Protocol I, Article 51","provision":"Prohibition on attacks unless the target is a lawful military objective and proportionality requirements are met"}],"iccRelevance":false,"civilianCasualties":9,"victims":"Qasem Soleimani (Iranian Quds Force commander); Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis (Iraqi militia commander); seven other individuals killed; 110+ U.S. soldiers injured in Iranian retaliation","perpetrators":"President Donald Trump (ordered strike); Secretary of State Mike Pompeo (provided political justification); Acting Secretary of Defense Christopher Miller","structuredVictims":[{"name":"Qasem Soleimani","group":"Killed in U.S. drone strike","status":"Deceased"},{"name":"Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis","group":"Killed in U.S. drone strike","status":"Deceased"},{"group":"U.S. service members","status":"110+ diagnosed with traumatic brain injuries from Iranian missile retaliation","count":110}],"structuredPerpetrators":[{"name":"Donald Trump","role":"President of the United States","institution":"White House"},{"name":"Mike Pompeo","role":"Secretary of State","institution":"Department of State"}],"updateLog":[{"date":"2020-07-07","summary":"Updated with UN Special Rapporteur report finding."},{"date":"2020-01-09","summary":"Updated with House War Powers resolution passage and Iraq parliamentary vote."}]}}