Video showing the moment the American missile explodes the vehicle in which Iranian Lieutenant General Qassem Suleimani was riding saw the light of publicity through social media.
The drone strike targeted two vehicles carrying high-ranking Shiites and Iranian officials at Baghdad airport in Iraq.
Among the dead were two other Iranian Revolutionary Guards generals, a colonel and six other soldiers.
The CCTV footage shows the rocket fired by the US drone crashing into one of the two vehicles, near the Baghdad airport facilities.
# BREAKING: This is the moment when first AGM-114 #Hellfire air-to-surface missile launched from a #USAF MQ-9 Reaper drone hit the convoy carrying #IRGC- Quds Force commander, Qasem # Soleimani & #PMU commander, Abu-Mahdi al-Muhandis last night near #Baghdad's International Airport! https://t.co/wIrVSR1NBU pic.twitter.com/N8p2W5mBtS
- Babak Taghvaee (@BabakTaghvaee) January 3, 2020
The vehicle carrying the 62-year-old Iranian lieutenant general was engulfed in flames after the explosion.
The body of Suleimani was dismembered
The body of Qassem Suleimani was found dismembered after the attack.
The body of the Iranian general was identified by the distinctive ring he wore on his left hand.
Pictures of Suleiman's dismembered body have been uploaded to the Internet.
How was the operation conducted?
The Pentagon remained undecided on the operation, but said in a statement that it had carried out the operation on the orders of President Donald Trump.
According to US media reports, the attack was carried out by a US drone, which hit two vehicles transporting Suleimani on an access road to Baghdad International Airport.
The United States has been closely monitoring General Suleimani's movements for months and could have killed him much earlier.
The Pentagon said in a statement that Iran was "preparing plans to attack US diplomats and military personnel in Iraq and throughout the region."
Source: in.gr