Skip to main content

Congressman Lamborn on the Death of Qassem Soleimani

January 3, 2020

Washington, D.C. — Last night, a U.S. strike killed Qassem Soleimani, an Iranian Major General in the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and the commander of its Quds Force. General Soleimani was responsible for the deaths of tens of thousands of people: from protestors on the streets of Tehran and Baghdad to innocent men, women, and children caught in the middle of the war in Syria. His Quds Force supplied EFPs to the insurgency in Iraq, which were the most devastating IEDs U.S. forces faced and directly resulted in over 600 Americans killed and thousands more wounded. Most recently, he directed the Iranian-linked Kata'ib Hezbollah militia to attack U.S. bases in Iraq with rockets, which killed an American, and storm the U.S. embassy in Baghdad.

In response to the news, Congressman Doug Lamborn released the following statement:

"Soleimani was the chief architect of Iran's reign of terror throughout the Middle East. He ordered the attacks on our bases last week that resulted in four injured troops and one dead American, the storming of our embassy—our sovereign territory, and was actively planning more attacks on Americans throughout the region. Both Presidents Bush and Obama squandered opportunities to bring Soleimani to justice, which should have been done long ago. Those in Congress who are carping about not being consulted beforehand did not voice those same concerns when President Obama took out Osama bin Laden without prior Congressional consultation, so there is no reason to listen to these complaints now. I applaud President Trump's decision and the extraordinary skill and professionalism of the men and women who executed his orders. Let us all pray for their safety in the days ahead."

This strike was not an "act of war" in the constitutional sense: American troops are lawfully in Iraq, authorized by Congress, and approved by the Iraqi government. General Soleimani was responsible for attacks on American forces legally present in a combat zone. They have the right to self-defense, and the U.S. government has a responsibility to defend them.