Gen. Soleimani's assassination
conducted by Israel, US

Qodsna (Tehran) - Speaking to Qods News Agency on the occasion of the first anniversary of the assassination of Lieutenant-General Qasem Soleimani by the US government, acclaimed Irish academic, Dr. Declan Hayes asserted that after the terror attack against Gen. Soleimani "the Middle East is not safer for those who have suffered and continue to suffer in the last year."

Talking about the reasons for the attack, the Irish thinker said that the US assassinated Gen. Soleimani "because he was an Iranian major general in Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and commander of its Quds Force. That is why he was murdered, along with other senior Iraqi and Iranian generals."

He then noted that the attack was not conducted solely by the US government.

The attack against Gen. Soleimani "was not an isolated event. It was one in a series of terrorist attacks, which include the murder of non-combatants in Iran, Syria and elsewhere. Those who orchestrated those murders believe they serve the strategic interests of Israel, the USA and their partners," Declan Hayes said.

"The objective is to lower the number of strategic choices available to Iran and to lower its ability to respond to ongoing and future challenges it faces. Turning Iran into another failed state would give rise to a number of winners and a large number of losers. Though I am sure Iran's leaders factor all of that into their analysis. I am not privy to their thought processes and nor do I wish to be," he added.

The Irish scholar further referred to sanctions imposed by the US against different countries around the world, stressing that "sanctions are a very effective weapon of war responsible for an untold number of deaths in Gaza, Syria, Iraq and elsewhere. The USA only really wishes to negotiate on its own terms to build the US-centric world it desires."

"The negotiation the USA desires with Iran and all other countries that oppose her is the same sort of negotiation Israel conducts with the various Palestinian factions. It is one that is best avoided," he underlined

Declan Hayes also commented on Israeli crimes against Palestinian, saying that "Israel continues to openly commit war crimes in Syria, just as it does in Gaza, Jerusalem and the West Bank. All of those war crimes are being normalized, as if those criminal acts are just the way life should be."

"Most of those Arab states are mere puppets, set up by the region's former colonial rulers to protect their interests and those of their many collaborators, Israel included," he said, referring to the recent normalization deals between Arab states and the Zionist regime.

Declan Hayes then talked about recent upheavals in the Middle East, noting that "there is no reason for America to leave Iraq, which they divided, conquered, exploited and used to subvert Syria and elsewhere."

"Iran must fortify the correct local allies on the hang together or hang separately policy. It must also develop deeper economic and military ties with Russia, China and their satellite countries, whilst remaining sovereign. These are easy things to say in broad brush strokes but difficult to implement when the USA, Israel and their allies wish to destroy you. Nevertheless, that is how it is," he said.