COLUMBIA JOURNALISM REVIEW – 08/01/2019
Jon Allsop
IN THE DAYS SINCE THE US MILITARY killed Qassem Suleimani, Iran’s fêted top security official, Iran’s leaders have repeatedly threatened retaliation. Yesterday, they volleyed ballistic missiles at two bases that house US troops in Iraq. No casualties were reported. On Twitter, Mohammad Javad Zarif, Iran’s foreign minister, said his country had “concluded proportionate measures in self-defense,” and insisted Iran does not want further escalation. President Trump, for his part, tweeted that “all is well!” Sources close to the president told Maggie Haberman, of the New York Times, that he’s looking for an “off-ramp” from the escalating tensions.