By all accounts, Qassem Suleimani, the Iranian military commander killed in a US strike, was not a brash man. There was nothing in his humble background from a poor village in Iran's Kerman province to make him a likely target for United States ire. His decades in the top ranks of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, however, did.
Suleimani left his roots in 1979 soon after the Iranian revolution unfolded. He quickly became a committed follower of Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, the Islamic Republic’s founder. Suleimani then joined Revolutionary Guard, the force created by Khomeini to protecting the Iranian revolution that evolved into a powerful and secretive organisation.
The Iran-Iraq War (1980-1988) was when Suleimani began to rise in stature. One of his early tasks was ferrying water to front-line positions. He soon took charge of a rifle company where his leadership earned him a reputation for bravery. There were also reports that he was injured during the war.
Sami Al Askari met Suleimani a number of times while working as chief of staff to former Iraqi prime minister Nouri Al Maliki. He recalled that despite Suleimani's rank of major general in the Guard’s foreign wing, the Quds Force, he had “never met him with uniform on, he was always wearing civilian clothes and you would never address him as General – just Haji Qassem”.
Mr Al Askari said that part of the general’s power stemmed from making others feel significant. When he speaks to you, he “puts it as though asking for advice or opinion – this is his way. It makes you feel that you are in the same boat as him”.
Suleimani understands Arabic, but Mr Al Askari, who met him at least four times, said he spoke only in Farsi at meetings.
Others say his influence comes from his close relationship with Iran’s current supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who took over when Khomeini died in 1989. So close are they that the supreme leader once referred to him as “a living martyr of the revolution” – a level of praise rarely heard.
In the early 1980s, Suleimani was one of the Revolutionary Guard officers sent to Lebanon to organise the formation of Shiite militia groups during the Lebanese Civil War. Out of those efforts rose the now regionally dominant Hezbollah. During his time training, directing and planning the rise of the group, Suleimani became close to one of its founding members and now secretary general, Hassan Nasrallah. Together, the pair planned countless Hezbollah actions inside and outside of Lebanon.
From the late 1990s, Suleimani served in the Quds Force – the Guards’ foreign operations wing – where his strategic mindset and lateral thinking served as a critical factor in asserting Iranian presence from Beirut to Sulaymaniyah.
But it was during the later years of the US-led occupation of Iraq that he came into international consciousness. Upset at the prospect of US troops remaining in the country, his Quds Force set about equipping militias for a wave of deadly operations against American and coalition troops. Roadside bombs built with Iranian expertise by Quds-trained Iraqi militants killed hundreds of foreign soldiers. So big did the threat become that General David Petraeus, then head of US forces in Iraq, singled him out as “truly evil”.
More recently, Suleimani served as the commander-in-chief of Iran's operations in support of Bashar Al Assad's regime in Syria, regularly being photographed with fighters on front lines as far afield as Aleppo and Deir Ezzor. One US official told The New Yorker: "He's running the war himself".
Suleimani had made several visits to Baghdad in recent months as Iran's influence in the country was challenged by mass protests in the Iraqi capital and the largely Shiite south against the government of Tehran-backed politicians.
- This article was first published in 2018 and updated on January 3, 2020.
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
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The specs
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The more serious side of specialty coffee
While the taste of beans and freshness of roast is paramount to the specialty coffee scene, so is sustainability and workers’ rights.
The bulk of genuine specialty coffee companies aim to improve on these elements in every stage of production via direct relationships with farmers. For instance, Mokha 1450 on Al Wasl Road strives to work predominantly with women-owned and -operated coffee organisations, including female farmers in the Sabree mountains of Yemen.
Because, as the boutique’s owner, Garfield Kerr, points out: “women represent over 90 per cent of the coffee value chain, but are woefully underrepresented in less than 10 per cent of ownership and management throughout the global coffee industry.”
One of the UAE’s largest suppliers of green (meaning not-yet-roasted) beans, Raw Coffee, is a founding member of the Partnership of Gender Equity, which aims to empower female coffee farmers and harvesters.
Also, globally, many companies have found the perfect way to recycle old coffee grounds: they create the perfect fertile soil in which to grow mushrooms.
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Engine: 2-litre turbocharged
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Last five meetings
2013: South Korea 0-2 Brazil
2002: South Korea 2-3 Brazil
1999: South Korea 1-0 Brazil
1997: South Korea 1-2 Brazil
1995: South Korea 0-1 Brazil
Note: All friendlies
RESULTS
6.30pm: Emirates Holidays Maiden (TB) Dh 82,500 (Dirt) 1,900m
Winner: Lady Snazz, Richard Mullen (jockey), Satish Seemar (trainer).
7.05pm: Arabian Adventures Maiden (TB) Dh 82,500 (D) 1,200m
Winner: Zhou Storm, Connor Beasley, Ali Rashid Al Raihe.
7.40pm: Emirates Skywards Handicap (TB) Dh 82,500 (D) 1,200m
Winner: Rich And Famous, Royston Ffrench, Salem bin Ghadayer.
8.15pm: Emirates Airline Conditions (TB) Dh 120,000 (D) 1,400m
Winner: Rio Angie, Sam Hitchcock, Doug Watson.
8.50pm: Emirates Sky Cargo (TB) Dh 92,500 (D) 1,400m
Winner: Kinver Edge, Richard Mullen, Satish Seemar.
9.15pm: Emirates.com (TB) Dh 95,000 (D) 2,000m
Winner: Firnas, Xavier Ziani, Salem bin Ghadayer.
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
The Greatest Royal Rumble card as it stands
50-man Royal Rumble - names entered so far include Braun Strowman, Daniel Bryan, Kurt Angle, Big Show, Kane, Chris Jericho, The New Day and Elias
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Casket match The Undertaker v Chris Jericho
Singles match John Cena v Triple H
Cruiserweight Championship Cedric Alexander v tba
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
THE SPECS
Engine: 1.5-litre, four-cylinder turbo
Transmission: seven-speed dual clutch automatic
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Specs
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The National photo project
Chris Whiteoak, a photographer at The National, spent months taking some of Jacqui Allan's props around the UAE, positioning them perfectly in front of some of the country's most recognisable landmarks. He placed a pirate on Kite Beach, in front of the Burj Al Arab, the Cheshire Cat from Alice in Wonderland at the Burj Khalifa, and brought one of Allan's snails (Freddie, which represents her grandfather) to the Dubai Frame. In Abu Dhabi, a dinosaur went to Al Ain's Jebel Hafeet. And a flamingo was taken all the way to the Hatta Mountains. This special project suitably brings to life the quirky nature of Allan's prop shop (and Allan herself!).
RESULTS
1.45pm: Maiden Dh75,000 1,400m
Winner: Dirilis Ertugrul, Fabrice Veron (jockey), Ismail Mohammed (trainer)
2.15pm: Handicap Dh90,000 1,400m
Winner: Kidd Malibu, Sandro Paiva, Musabah Al Muhairi
2.45pm: Maiden Dh75,000 1,000m
Winner: Raakezz, Tadhg O’Shea, Nicholas Bachalard
3.15pm: Handicap Dh105,000 1,200m
Winner: Au Couer, Sean Kirrane, Satish Seemar
3.45pm: Maiden Dh75,000 1,600m
Winner: Rayig, Pat Dobbs, Doug Watson
4.15pm: Handicap Dh105,000 1,600m
Winner: Chiefdom, Royston Ffrench, Salem bin Ghadayer
4.45pm: Handicap Dh80,000 1,800m
Winner: King’s Shadow, Richard Mullen, Satish Seemar
Indoor cricket in a nutshell
Indoor Cricket World Cup – Sep 16-20, Insportz, Dubai
16 Indoor cricket matches are 16 overs per side
8 There are eight players per team
9 There have been nine Indoor Cricket World Cups for men. Australia have won every one.
5 Five runs are deducted from the score when a wickets falls
4 Batsmen bat in pairs, facing four overs per partnership
Scoring In indoor cricket, runs are scored by way of both physical and bonus runs. Physical runs are scored by both batsmen completing a run from one crease to the other. Bonus runs are scored when the ball hits a net in different zones, but only when at least one physical run is score.
Zones
A Front net, behind the striker and wicketkeeper: 0 runs
B Side nets, between the striker and halfway down the pitch: 1 run
C Side nets between halfway and the bowlers end: 2 runs
D Back net: 4 runs on the bounce, 6 runs on the full