BRKG ***CONFIRMED... Iran's Qassem Soleimani killed in US airstrike*** (i.e. BUCKLE UP!) - Iran counterattacks

Lilbitsnana

On TB every waking moment
[IMG]https://pbs.twimg.com/profile_images/1187991517992050688/-UmOxHEl_bigger.jpg[/IMG] [B]Aleph ᴼⁿ ᴴⁱᵍʰ ᴬˡᵉʳᵗ [/B]

[B]️ א[/B]‏ @[B]no_itsmyturn[/B] 2m2 minutes ago

According to some sources/ US forces have temporarily closed the roads to Baghdad International Airport. Intense Helicopter activity was reported over #Baghdad as well.


[B]Aleph ᴼⁿ ᴴⁱᵍʰ ᴬˡᵉʳᵗ [/B][B]️ א[/B]‏ @[B]no_itsmyturn[/B] 2m2 minutes ago

Pompeo is in Baghdad
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ETA:J

[B]ELINT News[/B]‏ @[B]ELINTNews[/B] 2m2 minutes ago

Doubt it’s Pompeo, he was in DC 5 hours ago...
 

Ragnarok

On and On, South of Heaven
All a part of getting us out of the Middle East...or at least a greatly reduced footprint? If Trump tried to get us out like he did in a Syria the media, deep state bureaucracy along with Congress pitches a fit and torpedoes everything he tries. Come at it from the other direction and all these sovereign nations ask us to leave then what can we say? We can’t afford the footprint anymore and an economic reset is coming and we no longer need their oil.

Iraq Told The U.S. To Leave. The Trump Administration Is Telling Them To Pay More For America To Stay

Iraqi Prime Minister Adel Abdul-Mahdi requested the U.S. make plans to withdraw forces from the country Friday, but the U.S. State Department has unequivocally refused.

Abdul-Mahdi told reporters he had called Secretary of State Mike Pompeo asking the U.S. to send a delegation to plan for a U.S. withdrawal, NBC News reported. Pompeo quickly pushed back on that idea, however, saying not only will the U.S. remain in Iraq, but Iraq will have to start paying more for them to stay.

The prime minister’s request comes nearly a week after the Iraqi parliament voted to end the U.S. military’s deployment in the country.

Instigating the move was the U.S. drone strike on Iranian Gen. and known terrorist Qasem Soleimani at the Baghdad airport. Soleimani, the leader of Iran’s Quds Force, was responsible for the deaths of hundreds of Americans and thousands of others.

Trump’s administration argues Soleimani was actively involved in plotting further attacks on America and our allies, but his Democratic critics claim the attack was a dangerous escalation that could drag the U.S. into open conflict in the Middle East.
 

Ragnarok

On and On, South of Heaven
How long til Omar comes running out screaming racists or insert whatever...

Ilhan Omar Opposes Sanctions on Iran but Wants to Sanction Israel

Rep. Ilhan Omar has come under fire over her hypocrisy in criticizing President Donald Trump for his “unmeasured response” in waging “economic warfare” against Iran by imposing new sanctions, while at the same time having no problem supporting sanctions against Israel.

“This makes no sense. Sanctions are economic warfare,” the Minnesota Democrat said Wednesday following Trump’s announcement the U.S. would impose new “powerful” sanctions against Iran until “Iran changes its behavior.”

Omar continued: “They have already caused medical shortages and countless deaths in Iran. You cannot claim to want deescalation and then announce new sanctions with no clear goal. This is not a measured response!”

This makes no sense. Sanctions are economic warfare.
They have already caused medical shortages and countless deaths in Iran.
You cannot claim to want deescalation and then announce new sanctions with no clear goal. This is not a measured response! BuzzFeed News on Twitter
— Ilhan Omar (@IlhanMN) January 8, 2020

Earlier on Wednesday, Omar said the “crippling” sanctions would “starve the innocent people of Iran.”

Critics were quick to point out that for Omar, Israel’s citizens are apparently not as innocent as Iran’s. The Minnesota Democrat clearly has no qualms about sanctioning the Jewish state, as testified by her vocal support of the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement.

Sanctions against Iran are deemed “economic warfare” and “not a measured response.”

Such “warfare” against Jews in Israel is apparently fair game.
If sanctions on Iran are "economic warfare," doesn't that mean the BDS campaign against Israel that Omar supports is "warfare" as well? Ilhan Omar on Twitter
— Mark Hemingway (@Heminator) January 8, 2020

“So sanctions are only good when they are against Jews? You support BDS. You’re talking out of both sides of your mouth and REALLY exposing your radical antisemitism,” one Twitter user wrote.
1. "Sanctions are economic warfare."
2. Sanctions cause "medical shortages and countless deaths."
3. “Ilhan believes in and supports the BDS [Boycott, Divest, and Sanction Israel] movement." (Omar campaign, 2018) Ilhan Omar on Twitter
— Michael Knowles (@michaeljknowles) January 8, 2020

“Ilhan Omar views sanctions on terror regimes to be ‘economic warfare’ but supports them when aimed at the world’s only Jewish state. Must just be a coincidence,” another Twitter user said.

Ilhan Omar. Whose side r u on. You sound like a traitor to America. While supporting its enemy Iran. U oppose sanctions on Enemy Iran but support BDS sanctions on ally Israel. It’s time for u to be thrown off of every House Committee esp Foreign Affairs. Ilhan Omar on Twitter
— Morton Klein (@MortonAKlein7) January 9, 2020

“Ilhan Omar has now decried sanctions on the Castros in Cuba, Maduro in Venezuela, and the Ayatollah in Iran,” Michael Abrams, a GOP communications director, wrote. “At the same time, she’s the leading voice in Congress on sanctioning the Jewish people in the world’s only Jewish state. Wonder why.”
Yes, constitutionally intl boycotts & sanctions are tools of war and NOT “free speech.” @IlhanMN should remember that next time she advocates for BDS (Boycott Divestment & Sanctions) against Israel: a US ally.
We don’t fight wars against allies.
We do against enemies. Ilhan Omar on Twitter
— Daniel Pomerantz (@danielspeaksup) January 9, 2020

What does the S in BDS stand for, again? Ilhan Omar on Twitter
— Lahav Harkov (@LahavHarkov) January 8, 2020
She only knows what BS stands for.
— Prawn. The "P" is silent. (@RonbamThe) January 8, 2020
 

Ragnarok

On and On, South of Heaven
Trump: Soleimani Was Planning Attacks on ‘Four Embassies’

During portions of an interview set to air on Friday’s broadcast of the Fox News Channel’s “Ingraham Angle,” President Trump stated that Qasem Soleimani was “probably” targeting the U.S. embassy in Baghdad and that he believes Soleimani had plans to attack “four embassies.”

Trump stated, “[W]e will tell you that probably it was going to be the embassy in Baghdad.”

He also stated, “I can reveal that I believe it would’ve been four embassies.” Trump: Soleimani Was Planning Attacks on 'Four Embassies' | Breitbart
 

TerryK

TB Fanatic
A partial list of the terror Salami was responsible for. It's a shame he got to die so quickly. He deserved to suffer much more.
Photos: Top 10 atrocities from the now-vaunted Soleimani

By Monica Showalter

As creeps like Rep. Ilhan Omar denounce the rubout of Iranian terrorist kingpin Qassem Soleimani as the killing of a "foreign official," the press calls him "a farm boy" or "icon," and stupid Hollywood celebrities send their condolences to "the Iranian people," (who are celebrating, actually) the ugly hard reality remains that Qassem Soleimani, leader of the terrorist Quds force, was a monster, a stone-cold killer of innocents, the driving force behind Iran as a state sponsor of terror. His funeral song should be "That Smell." He stunk of death all around him and liked the stench. According to the Washington Post:
“The warfront is mankind’s lost paradise,” Soleimani said in a 2009 interview. “One type of paradise that is portrayed for mankind is streams, beautiful nymphs and greeneries. But there is another kind of paradise. ... The warfront was the lost paradise of the human beings, indeed.”
But this isn't stopping the left from lionizing the beast. Here's a list, in no particular order, of the worst of what he did:
1. Assassination. The left may rail about the targeted killing of Soleimani as an 'assassination' but killing heads of state was Soleimani's stock in trade. He was behind the 2005 bomb murder of Lebanon's beloved president, Rafik Hariri. Dexter Filkins, writing in the New Yorker, in 2013, explained what and why: "Hariri, a Sunni, had been trying to take Lebanon out of the Iranian-Syrian orbit. On Valentine’s Day, he was killed by a suicide truck bomb whose payload weighed more than five thousand pounds." Harire death left a cold chill throughout the Middle East.
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Hariri assassination memorial // Image credit: St1ke, via Wikimedia Commons // CC BY-SA 2.0
2. Mass killings of American military targets. In 1983, Soleiman was involved in the Beirut barracks bombing. Acting in the mullah regime's interests, his idea was to drive U.S. forces out through use of Iran's little pawn, Hezb'allah, which grew in power after the mass attack while Iran itself succeeded in getting the Iran's aims enacted. Soleimani's Quds force was the actual creator of Hezb'allah, which was always happy to be Iran's little pawn. After the attacks, all were emboldened. I recall that the late great Herbert Meyer, at the time a Reagan administration national security official, later said the Reagan administration rued the decision to take troops out, given the growing power of the terrorists that came of it.
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1983_Beirut_barracks_bombings
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Beirut U.S. barracks bombing // USMC public domain
3. Mass killings of more American military targets. In 1996, Soleimani and his buddies sent in a truck bomb to blow up the Khobar Towers in naked warfare to advance Iran's interests. Iran had a problem with the U.S. teaming up with the Saudis to fortify the nation from extremist attacks. Twenty mostly American troops were killed and nearly 500 were injured and he got away with it.
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Khobar Towers bombing / U.S. Department of Defense / public domain
4. Targeting of diplomatic compounds, Part I: Soleimani went after American civilians, too, and anyone associated with them in his twin bombings of the U.S. embassies in Kenya and Tanzania in 1998, killing 224 innocents, mostly Africans who either worked at the facilities or were passers by. 4,000 more were injured. Al Qaida got most of the blame, but Soleimani was the state sponsor for al-Qaida, giving it its start:
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Kenya bombing aftermath // FBI public domain
5. Actual war on U.S. troops during the Iraq war. Andrew McCarthy writes: "Our government estimates that he was responsible for the killing of more than 600 U.S. troops during the fighting in Iraq — and that represents just some of his anti-American operations, coordinating the networks that target Americans and our interests throughout the region." He wasn't satisfied with the passive-aggressive kind of warfare on civilians, he moved into full frontal warfare with the Americans.
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Image Credit: Javad Hadi, via Wikimedia Commons // CC BY-SA 4.0
6. Sadistic innovations in war-crime warfare, 2005-2019: Most of the world agrees that land mines and chemical warfare are out of bounds. Not Soleiman, who saw that as his opportunity to get a battlefield edge through innovations in war crime technology others wouldn't touch. According to the Washington Post, his sick legacy was the EFP, a more gruesome version of the IED, to target U.S. troops. Some people innovate to make the world a better place. Soleimani only got creative in order to advance evil. The Post writes: "EFPs killed at least 196 U.S. troops and wounded nearly 900 between 2005 and 2011, defense officials revealed in 2015, and Castner said a high number of amputations throughout the war were the direct result of the weapons. In the 2006 attack, slugs took both legs off a soldier and one from a gunner, he wrote in his memoir, 'The Long Walk.'"
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Image credit: Bryan Price, via Flickr // CC BY-SA 2.0
7. Unprovoked rocket assaults on Israel. When one speaks of attacks on Israel, one is tempted to ask 'which one' and Soleimani was certainly responsible for nearly all of them. However, Soleimani's 2018 barrage, halted mostly by the Iron Dome, but nevertheless open warfare of raining rocket attacks through use of Hezb'allah, called for a response. Israel wanted to take him out, according to citations in the Jerusalem Post, but was halted by the Obama administration, which warned the mullahs of the plan.
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Image credit: IDF and Nehemiya Gershuni-Aylho // CC BY-SA 3.0
8. Brutal attacks on democracy at home: Soleimani wasn't just a foreign-ops guy, he was also the chief thug back home in Iran, urging vicious crushing of student protests, according to the Guardian, presumably beginning in at least 2009 and certainly carrying on in earnest since 2017. The mailed fist of power was the only thing that animated him. The Guardian writes: Soon after taking control of the Quds force, he was part of a group of Revolutionary Guard commanders who in a letter warned reformist President Mohammad Khatami to put down student protests, or risk them stepping in. Police moved in to crush protests, as they would a decade later. “He was more important than the president, spoke to all factions in Iran, had a direct line to the supreme leader and was in charge of Iran’s regional policy,” said Dina Esfandiary, a fellow at the Century Foundation think tank. “It doesn’t get more important and influential than that.”
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Image credit: Harrison Staab via Flickr // CC BY-SA 2.0
9. His Houthi War in Yemen. Yemen's a miserable place with massive demographic and resource problems. Soleimani used that as the perfect launch pad to attack Saudi Arabia. Untold miseries of warfare followed, mostly blamed on President Trump in the mass media. It was actually Soleimani's doing.
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Image credit: VOA public domain
10. The first 9/11s. Soleimani was involved in the still-unpunished bombing of the Israeli embassy in 1992 and the even bigger AMIA Jewish Center in Buenos Aires in 1994, which killed more than 100 people. Up until then, mass casualty murder of civilians was not a terrorist 'thing.' After that, it was. AMIA was said to be the first 9/11, the model for this sick new mode of terror which culminated in 9/11. Soleimani wasn't the chief of the Quds force at the time but the Guardian reports he was thought to have been in on it. We know he got promoted not too long after.
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AMIA attack aftermath // public domain
This list is just a little list. The beast's terrorism career extended across the world, with his involvement in attacks in India, in Thailand, in France. He's the creep who gave Hugo Chavez all that protection and entrenchment in Venezuela. Remember the bizarre assassination bid against the Saudi ambassador that originated in Texas? Him again. He never stopped aiming for the big atrocities. Let him explain them now as he meets his Maker.
Image credit, Soleimani picture: Khameini.ir, via Wikimedia Commons // CC BY-SA 4.0
 

Lilbitsnana

On TB every waking moment
Karim Sadjadpour‏Verified account @ksadjadpour 6m6 minutes ago
Karim Sadjadpour Retweeted Firas Maksad

The most trusted mediator between the US and Iran, Sultan Qaboos of Oman, has died. He was the world’s longest serving monarch, since 1970.

Karim Sadjadpour added,

Firas Maksad @FirasMaksad

BREAKING Sultan Qaboos of Oman has died
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ELINT NewsRetweeted

Firas Maksad‏ @FirasMaksad 10m10 minutes ago

BREAKING Sultan Qaboos of Oman has died
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Key player in regional diplomacy, long believed to be ailing.
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Lilbitsnana

On TB every waking moment
Yashar Ali
Verified account @yashar 5m5 minutes ago

1. Holy cow. State media in Oman is reporting that Sultan Qaboos has died at 79. The challenge is he has never had an heir. One week after the death of Qasem Suleimani...this is a significant event. Both Iranian and American leaders will be at his funeral

@[B]yashar[/B] 1m1 minute ago
2. This is a major event because Oman has been an island (not literally) of tranquility in the Middle-East and the Sultan was one of the few people who could mediate between the US and Iran. The Sultan has no apparent heir...a council will likely decide who his heir is


@[B]yashar[/B] 1m1 minute ago

3. The Sultan was always rumored to be gay and he never had any children. He married once and that ended in divorce in 1979.
 

Lilbitsnana

On TB every waking moment
Joyce Karam‏Verified account @Joyce_Karam 6m6 minutes ago
Joyce Karam Retweeted وكالة الأنباء العمانية

#Oman’s Sultan Qaboos has died. One of most moderate figures in Middle East, in power since 1970. Acted as middleman in negotiations between US-Iran, Saudi-Yemen, Iraq-Kuwait, Israel-Palestine, West-Syria. Only visited White House once. RIP
 

Lilbitsnana

On TB every waking moment
Yashar Ali
Verified account @yashar 5m5 minutes ago

1. Holy cow. State media in Oman is reporting that Sultan Qaboos has died at 79. The challenge is he has never had an heir. One week after the death of Qasem Suleimani...this is a significant event. Both Iranian and American leaders will be at his funeral

@[B]yashar[/B] 1m1 minute ago
2. This is a major event because Oman has been an island (not literally) of tranquility in the Middle-East and the Sultan was one of the few people who could mediate between the US and Iran. The Sultan has no apparent heir...a council will likely decide who his heir is


@[B]yashar[/B] 1m1 minute ago

3. The Sultan was always rumored to be gay and he never had any children. He married once and that ended in divorce in 1979.

Yashar Ali [/B]‏Verified account @yashar 19m19 minutes ago
4. The Sultan did apparently leave envelopes with the name of his choice but that is only if a council failed to come up with a choice of a successor. The point is though, there is no natural heir. And that causes some stress and concern.


] Yashar Ali
[/B]‏Verified account @yashar 6m6 minutes ago
5. The reason this is a bigger deal now is tensions are at an all time high with the US and Iran. If he had died a year ago, it would have been a major moment (he's been in power for 50 years), but not as significant as this.
 

jward

passin' thru
Aleph ᴼⁿ ᴴⁱᵍʰ ᴬˡᵉʳᵗ ️ א (@no_itsmyturn) Tweeted:
This is what's now spreading in allegedly pro-IRGC social networks:
- Something will happen tonight!
- Iran might try to blockade the strait of Hormuz
- Americans are holding their breath
It's either PSYOPS or they're about to do something!
♂️♂️♂️
(Just quoting them nothing more) Aleph ᴼⁿ ᴴⁱᵍʰ ᴬˡᵉʳᵗ ️ א on Twitter View: https://twitter.com/no_itsmyturn/status/1215762332657340418?s=20
 

marsh

On TB every waking moment
You have the Russians getting aggressive in the North Arabian Sea. Wondering if that connects.


US Destroyer Issues 'Warning Blasts' After Russian Warship's "Aggressive Approach" In Arabian Sea
Profile picture for user Tyler Durden
by Tyler Durden
Fri, 01/10/2020 - 12:50

A major and dangerous close call between US and Russia has unfolded in the north Arabian sea near the Persian Gulf. A Russian warship “aggressively approached” a US Navy destroyer, nearly hitting it, a US Navy statement said Friday.

The US Navy further released video of the incident, which reportedly involved repeat warnings issued from the US vessel over a risk of collision. This included five warning blast signals issued from the deck of the US destroyer, the USS Farragut.

video 1:00 min
View: https://twitter.com/i/status/1215658745205796864


“On Thursday, Jan. 9, while conducting routine operations in the North Arabian Sea, USS Farragut was aggressively approached by a Russian Navy ship,” the US Navy’s Fifth Fleet, which operates in the Persian Gulf and Middle East said in a statement.

Farragut sounded five short blasts, the international maritime signal for danger of a collision, and requested the Russian ship alter course in accordance with international rules of the road.”

The US Navy underscored that the Russian vessel made an "aggressive approach" which very nearly resulted in collision in the open seas. Indeed video confirms the two ships came very close to one another.

U.S. 5th Fleet
@US5thFleet

View: https://twitter.com/US5thFleet/status/1215658745205796864


On Thursday, Jan. 9, while conducting routine operations in the North Arabian Sea, USS Farragut (DDG 99) was aggressively approached by a Russian Navy ship.
Embedded video
4,903
7:36 AM - Jan 10, 2020
"The Russian ship initially refused but ultimately altered course,” the statement added, and noted further: “While the Russian ship took action, the initial delay in complying with international rules while it was making an aggressive approach increased the risk of collision.”

According to a CNN report of the incident, the Russian vessel came as close as 180 feet from the US ship, close enough for each side to directly and physically communicate from the decks.
The Russian destroyer nearly struck the US ship, video released by the US 5th Fleet shows (screengrab).
In one video a US Navy crew member can be seen running in the direction of the Russian destroyer in order to establish voice contact and wave the vessel off.

Importanly, the USS Farragut is part of the USS Harry S. Truman aircraft carrier group deployed to the region last year to ensure open and safe passageway for vessels traversing the vital Strait of Hormuz amid soaring tensions with Iran.
 

jward

passin' thru
Maybe Marsh..think when I posted it on the other thread my comments were along just those lines....
...."same dance, different ballroom!"
 

Housecarl

On TB every waking moment
Hummm.....

Posted for fair use.....

January 10, 2020
Some worrisome aspects of the Iranian missile attack

By Mark Jarrett

A look at the damage from the Iranian missile attack on Al-Asad Airbase in western Iraq is sobering. The Iranian missiles showed great precision inin their attacks, and this strike provided a robust test and warning of their capabilities. They hit and destroyed aircraft hangars on the airbase, showing something close to one-meter accuracy. Of five hangars in a row, the one in the middle was targeted, showing off their precision. The Iranians clearly have current intelligence and targeting information about the airbase, and they were able to execute the strike precisely.

They can reasonably say they targeted and destroyed the drones that killed General Qassem Soleimani. At least some hangars on the airbase that they think the drones came from were destroyed. Reports state that their in-country propaganda are claiming almost a hundred U.S. dead. While it seems that no U.S. Marines were hurt, it is clear that the Iranians could have struck living quarters in an attempt to hurt Americans. It is said they provided warning ahead of their strike. They showed restraint on their end.

This is a wake-up call and a warning for the region. Their capabilities are now clearly demonstrated. Many of our most commonly used airbases are well within range. Our bases in Iraq frequently faced short-range rocket attacks, but this was the first ballistic missile attack in years. If we had effective ballistic missile defenses in place at Al-Asad, we would have defended these targets. We did not have them, and either we did not defend them or the effective strikes were those that slipped through our defense. We can assume that Patriot batteries will be deployed to our Iraqi airbases, but only if the Iraqi government permits.

As for further hostilities with Iran, now front and center is the idea that we would need to fight from airbases or carriers outside effective missile range in order to first disrupt the missile launch systems so that airbases that are closer could be safely used. In the first Gulf War, tremendous effort was put into the Scud Hunt, as Saddam lobbed Scud missiles at Saudi Arabia and Israel, while our aircraft desperately tried to find the missile launchers.

Trump deterred Iran by being willing to strike hard back. Iran’s economy and oil production in particular are vulnerable. But Iran has shown intelligence in its signaled desire to walk away from conflict, and it has simultaneously signaled deterrence by demonstrating its capacity to hurt its neighbors hosting U.S. airbases. Expect increased sales of Patriot missiles by all countries in the region.
 

Lilbitsnana

On TB every waking moment
Aleph ᴼⁿ ᴴⁱᵍʰ ᴬˡᵉʳᵗ ️ א‏ @no_itsmyturn 31s31 seconds ago

Won't translate it completely, important point: At that critical situation, Ukrainian 752 departed from IKA and it got close to a vital military site at a dangerous pose and altitude, due to a human error which was unintentionally, the aircraft was
1f447.png
1/2

[UAleph ᴼⁿ ᴴⁱᵍʰ ᴬˡᵉʳᵗ ️ א‏ @no_itsmyturn 25s25 seconds ago

targeted that unfortunately led to death of our citizens and foreigners

View: https://twitter.com/no_itsmyturn/status/1215840539414802432
 

Lilbitsnana

On TB every waking moment
Aleph ᴼⁿ ᴴⁱᵍʰ ᴬˡᵉʳᵗ ️ א‏ @no_itsmyturn 31s31 seconds ago

Won't translate it completely, important point: At that critical situation, Ukrainian 752 departed from IKA and it got close to a vital military site at a dangerous pose and altitude, due to a human error which was unintentionally, the aircraft was
1f447.png
1/2

[UAleph ᴼⁿ ᴴⁱᵍʰ ᴬˡᵉʳᵗ ️ א‏ @no_itsmyturn 25s25 seconds ago

targeted that unfortunately led to death of our citizens and foreigners

View: https://twitter.com/no_itsmyturn/status/1215840539414802432


[B]Aleph ᴼⁿ ᴴⁱᵍʰ ᴬˡᵉʳᵗ [/B][B]️ א[/B]‏ @[B]no_itsmyturn[/B] 19s19 seconds ago

Anyone who's looking for sources: Iranian Agency ISNA: https://is.gd/cg4KUI Khabar E Fori telegram channel: https://t.me/akhbarefori/207582 … Iranian Mehr News Telegram Channel:
 
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