Exposing empire: How Soleimani’s killing put paid to myths the US told itself and others

Exposing empire: How Soleimani’s killing put paid to myths the US told itself and others

For decades, the US establishment has talked about an international community, rules-based order, the importance of NATO allies, democracy and sovereignty. Then-President Donald Trump had an Iranian general assassinated. “Snow doesn’t fall to cover the hills, but to reveal the tracks of every beast,” goes an old Serbian saying. The proverbial snow in this case is last week’s killing of General Qassem Soleimani, head of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) Quds Force, which exploded not just the convoy he was riding in, but decades of accumulated platitudes about the US, its allies, and the world.