Tension between the United States and Iran increases
The United States is again conducting air exercises to try to dissuade Iran from retaliating for the anniversary of Qassem Soleimani's death. And it has done so again through the flight of two B-52 Stratofortress bombers over the Gulf. The B52s took off from their air base in North Dakota and flew to the Gulf to demonstrate America's ability to respond to any Iranian action.
This is not the first time this has occurred, as in the past two months these bombers have flown over the Gulf on several occasions to deter Teheran. The United States Central Command issued a communiqué stating that "this is a clear message to deter all those who seek to harm the Americans or their interests".
General Frank McKenzie, the military leader of CENTCOM, said that "the United States continues to deploy combat-ready capabilities in its area of responsibility", an area that is specifically limited to the Gulf. "We do not intend to cause any conflict, but you should not underestimate our capabilities to defend our interests or respond to any attack," he added.
According to US intelligence, Iranian forces would be on a state of maximum alert, including their air defences, as the anniversary of Qassem Soleimani's death approaches. According to intelligence reports, Iran could be preparing an attack on US interests to "avenge" the death of Qassem Soleimani.
The current leader of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard reportedly threatened to kill the US president, Donald Trump, and other US officials in a closed session of the Iranian parliament. The director of the CIA and Mike Pompeo, secretary of state, were also among the people mentioned by the military leader.
One of the places where the US interests have been most attacked has been Iraq, where Iran maintains several militias that are supported from Teheran on a logistic and military level. Just 10 days ago, the US embassy in Baghdad was again attacked by several missiles that fell on the so-called Green Zone, although they caused little material damage. At the beginning of the month Washington reduced its diplomatic staff in the country in view of the risk of attacks by pro-Iranian militias.
Qassem Soleimani was precisely in charge of this whole network of militias that Iran controls throughout the Middle East, and his death was therefore highly symbolic. These militias, which are present in Iraq, Yemen, Lebanon, Israel and other countries, are the tool through which the regime of the ayatollahs extends its territorial influence and launders terrorist activities in order to prevent them from being directly blamed.
The year therefore ends in a similar manner to that which began, with a major show of force by the United States against Iran's attitude. However, the arrival of Joe Biden at the White House may put a brake on this escalation of events.
