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Soleimani's Death Is a Huge Blow to Iran's Plans for Regional Domination
(Guardian-UK) Hassan Hassan - The killing of Iranian general Qasem Soleimani could prove to be the most consequential U.S. slaying of an enemy operative in recent memory. His killing came at a time when the project he had led - to create an Iranian hegemony in the region - is facing unprecedented challenges in Iraq and Lebanon. His successor is unlikely to be able to complete that mission and contain the spiral of events in countries where, only a year ago, Iran declared major victories. In the short term, doomsday scenarios seem far-fetched. Neither side is interested in an outright war. Crucially, nearly all of the most influential public figures in Iraq have called for a restrained response. While a future response is possible, alarmism about a spiral into confrontation between Iran and the U.S. is misplaced. In the long term, though, Soleimani's killing will likely mark the end of an era for Iran's attempts to further expand its influence in the region. This project has been made a lot less potent with the killing of the one man who knew well how to patiently build it. However, even in Iraq and Lebanon, where he had the most success, Soleimani's machine has serious glitches. Soleimani had been busy dealing with raging local challenges and the attacks on the U.S. embassy and on a military base were partly designed to divert attention from the protests. The writer is director of the non-state actors program at the Center for Global Policy in Washington.