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Iran Vows "Harsh Revenge" for U.S. Killing of Top Commander. Aired 5-6a ET

Aired January 04, 2020 - 05:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

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DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Last night at my direction, the United States military executed a flawless strike that terminated the terrorist ringleader responsible for gravely wounding and murdering thousands of and thousands of people and hundreds and hundreds at least of Americans. He was planning a very major attack and we got him.

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BECKY ANDERSON, CNN ANCHOR: Well, in Tehran, burning of the U.S. flags and chants of "Death to America" tell of the outrage there over Soleimani's death. Iran is promising it will strike back.

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MAJID TAKHT-RAVANCHI, IRANIAN AMBASSADOR TO THE U.N.: There will be harsh revenge. Iran will act based on its own choosing. And the time, the place will be decided by Iran later on. They should expect anything as a result of this aggression.

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ANDERSON: Well, Jomana Karadsheh is in Baghdad, where that massive funeral procession has been taking place.

My colleague Nic Robertson is in Riyadh for the response from U.S. allies in the region and beyond. Ramin Mostaghim is covering the reaction on the streets of Tehran. In Beirut, Nick Paton welsh with the look at the potential response from Iran, what will they were planning as far as the U.S. was concerned and what could be next.

Oren Liebermann along the Israel-Lebanon border, a potential flashpoint. And Matthew Chance is in Moscow, where Russia, which believes it has significant leverage across the Middle East is called the killing "short-sighted."

Let's begin with Jomana in the Iraqi capital, where Soleimani has been killed and thousands have been filling these streets. It's been an interesting morning. Certainly, these are supporters of Soleimani and those who were killed in the U.S. strikes.

As we've been pointing out, not a character who was revered by people across the country.

What's the likely fallout, though, from what we saw Friday and indeed as we consider these images in Baghdad today?

JOMANA KARADSHEH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, you know, Becky, as you mentioned earlier, not everyone here is a supporter of Qasem Soleimani, so many here were opposed his influence, his country's influence when it comes to the Iraqi political scene and the country's affairs.

At the same time there was so much anger here with how this played out, this, what so many see as disrespect by the United States to its Iraqi allies by carrying out this attack by bringing Iraq into the midst of this confrontation between the United States and Iran.

You know, we're seeing these scenes of anger playing out on the streets of Baghdad today; as you mentioned, over the past few hours, these crowds are growing in size, huge crowds for this funeral procession for the 10 individuals who were killed in the U.S. strike.

Of course, that includes Soleimani and Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis, one of the top commanders here of the Iranian-backed Shia militias. The crowds include senior Iraqi political and security figures, the Iraqi prime minister.

But the majority on the streets are supporters of Qasem Soleimani and Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis.

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KARADSHEH: These are young men mostly, who see them as national heroes, as two commanders who led the battle against ISIS on the front lines, who credit them with that victory against ISIS.

You know, you're seeing really emotional scenes playing out on the streets, some so emotional, crying and then you've got that anger, the chants, "Death to America" and "Death to Israel," those who are vowing, promising to retaliate to this strike -- Becky.

What does the Iraqi government do next?

KARADSHEH: They're in a very difficult position right now, Becky, as you can imagine. This is very much a caretaker government. This is a very weak government, dealing with anti-government protests takes place for months. Then you have this anger amongst the Iranian-backed Shia militias, who in the recent weeks have been pushing the government to try to get U.S. forces out of the country.

This is how we saw that standoff at the U.S. embassy in the past week pretty much come to an end after the Iranian-backed militias and supporters were promised that the Iraqi government, the Iraqi parliament would work on some legislation to end the U.S. president's forces. There's a lot of pressure on the political leadership right now to stand up to the United States, to try to reassess its relationship with the U.S. politically, the presence of U.S. forces here, its security agreement with the United States.

And there's a parliament extraordinary session scheduled to take place tomorrow. We'll have to wait to see if that does happen and that is expected to be where we'll see politicians debate something sort of possible legislation or what the next moves will be by the Iraqi government.

But a very difficult position that the prime minister and the political leadership finds itself in, right now, between the United States and Iran.

ANDERSON: Yes, you made a very, very good point, OK. We'll watch this space is the sort of story here. Thank you, Jomana.

One of the latest reactions coming from outside this region, the Middle east, the U.K., the latest country now advising against all travel to Iraq, except for the Kurdistan region and all but essential travel to Iran. CNN's international diplomatic editor Nic Robertson is standing by in Riyadh with international reaction.

Nic, the Middle East is nothing if not complicated and, over the past couple of years, this fractured theater, as it were, has been made more complicated not less than by an erstwhile U.S. partner seen now by so many as unreliable.

Where do we see support for this U.S. action against Soleimani, Iran's chief military officer, Friday?

And what do players in this region and beyond hope will happen next?

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR: Yes, look, unreliable and unpredictable is the way President Trump is perceived in the region. The Saudis like him because he's anti-Iran. And that suits them. They see Iran as trying to expand their influence around the region.

They saw Qasem Soleimani as the spearhead, funding and pushing proxies to attack, including here in Riyadh, through the proxies in Yemen, the Houthis, firing Iran-made ballistic missiles landing very close to this capital. No one was killed.

So there's no lack of understanding here, if you will, about what Iran has been doing, how it's been trying to achieve it. And the fact that the United States has stood up and sided with Saudi Arabia and others in the region in that view.

The concern has come, they don't feel, sometimes, that President Trump always has the nuance to make the best decisions. And then that even deeper concern is, sometimes, he acts without telling his allies. He appears to act quite spontaneously and then reverses it, like pulling the troops out of Syria and then not pulling some out and putting some back in.

It's that unreliable and unpredictable nature that has people concerned. The Saudis here are still by United States.

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ROBERTSON: And I don't think that's going to change. But they recognize that puts them, in you know, in the crosshairs a little bit more than they were before. They were targeted by Iran, in a complex attack at two oil processed facilities just in the past few minutes.

What they want to see, this is what they're saying, they don't want to see an escalation in the region. So they're urging caution and that's the broad messaging coming from European leaders, who have become estranged from Trump over the past couple of years, over President Trump's policy toward Iran, maximum sanctions and pulling out of the multinational nuclear deal with Iran.

So the United States, in some ways, isolated from European allies, who disagree with the tactics, and with allies in the region here, they're worried about what happens next.

ANDERSON: Nic is in Riyadh for you. CNN's Nick Paton Walsh is live in Lebanon, home to Hezbollah an Iranian proxy, that has worked in close coordination with Qasem Soleimani.

Nick Paton Walsh, what's the perspective there?

NICK PATON WALSH, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Certainly, if you listen to some U.S. officials, they suggest that Soleimani met with top Hezbollah officials. Those people are still unnamed and Hezbollah has denied involvement in things like that.

But you have to also look at precisely what the allegations from the U.S. officials are, that Qasem Soleimani was preparing some kind of imminent attack. Now they haven't given great detail. They haven't suggested how far advanced the attacks were. They have said they would be focused on Iraq, Syria and Lebanon, against their military and diplomatic facilities.

There's really only one embassy here in Beirut. That gives you some indication about what they may have been concerned about.

What else potentially could Iran do in retaliation?

Well, a Western intelligence official said to me, we should be looking past towards increased funding for Iran's proxies. That might disperse the threat across the region and made it harder potentially for the U.S. or Iran's adversaries to quell the threat.

But also cyber attacks, something Iran has been invested in, said this Western intelligence official, over the past year, both on the state and nonstate level. There are many other ways in which Iran will seek to ensure that its retaliation is entirely unexpected.

They're the masters of the incremental move that nobody really saw coming to some degree. Overt military confrontation with the U.S. highly unlikely, probably foolish because of the U.S.' ability to overwhelmingly to respond to that. Here in Lebanon, certainly, I think, tensions are higher because of

the possibility that Hezbollah, an Iranian-backed militant group here who also have a pretty heavy political hand, could potentially make good on their threats.

In the past they've used rockets against Israel to the south here. That could trigger what many have seen potentially brewing for well over a decade, another conflict between Israel and its enemies here in Lebanon.

That could be utterly devastating according to the rhetoric on both sides. I'm sure that both sides want to avoid that as many as it might be a helpful dynamic to certain elements in both societies, given their political quagmires that they're facing at the moment.

But we may also see things that are entirely not from this region. Many accuse Iran of having proxies, having loyal agents, possibly, in the guise of Hezbollah in other parts of the world, South America and even parts of Europe, too, there have been plots disrupted over the past decades there as well.

What we seeing coming out of Iran may not be in this immediate period of mourning, where Tehran wants the messaging to be about honoring Qasem Soleimani in a lengthy series processions in Iraq and Iran, a lot of choreography there.

It may be something we see in the weeks and months ahead, potentially when Donald Trump's notoriously not that long attention span has moved onto something else and maybe U.S. posture has relaxed slightly.

It might make the job of Iran easier if they seek to target U.S. assets but also to U.S. allies here, may find their sense of guard comes down slightly as well. So expect the unexpected, I would say.

We still have to learn from the United States precisely what it was that they thought Qasem Soleimani was planning that his removal from the scene potentially would have impeded. Remember if you're planning something, you don't necessarily have to be there for its execution, if you've already put the blocks in place initially.

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WALSH: So a few questions to be answered from the U.S. about the use of intelligence to execute an attack like this, a game-changer, quite frankly, in the region, given their spotted history of use of intelligence in past two decades -- Becky.

ANDERSON: Nick Paton Walsh is Beirut. We're fanned out around the region and the world. Stay with us, there's much more fallout on the death of Qasem Soleimani. We're going to head to Moscow for the reaction from a very important Iranian ally there.

Plus, harsh revenge: more on how Iran is intending to retaliate against its top military chief in Iran. Stay with us.

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ANDERSON: Well, crowds packing Baghdad and other cities for funeral processions in Iraq for those killed in the U.S. strike on Friday. Among the dead, the top Iranian commander, Qasem Soleimani, whom the U.S. holds responsible for the deaths of hundreds of Americans.

President Donald Trump said he ordered the strike to stop a war. But if Iran's reactions are any indication, well, it may well lead to one. Certainly, that's the perspective of experts in the region.

The country's U.N. ambassador has promised harsh revenge for what he calls an act of war.

Well, since it threw its weight behind Bashar al-Assad in Syria alongside the Iranians, Russia has been building its influence in the Middle East. And with that, the Kremlin believes it is carving out sort of a mediation, while it has more leverage than it has had for years in this region.

So how do they see, what's reaction to what we've seen in Iraq and the death of Iran's top military leader?

What happens next?

How might Russia get involved?

Our bureau chief Matthew Chance standing by in Moscow for you.

What's your perspective, Matthew?

MATTHEW CHANCE, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, look, I mean, the Russians are probably the best friend the Iranians have on this national stage. They provide, you know, a lot of diplomatic cover for Iran at venues like the United Nations Security Council.

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CHANCE: They often veto resolutions that are critical of the Islamic Republic. They've got an economic relationship, which is relatively good and, of course, they supply weapons to Iran as well, as well as fighting shoulder to shoulder with Iranian and Iranian-backed forces in Syria as they support their joint ally, Bashar al-Assad, in the Syrian war that's been unfolding there for the past several years.

Qasem Soleimani is somebody who is well-known in Russia. He's come here a couple times to deal with issues like arms procurement, foreign policy, coordination on the ground between Russian and Iranian military personnel in Syria.

And so it's entirely expected that the news that he'd been killed by the United States would be criticized by Russia. And there have been some very sharply critical comments issued by various departments of the Russian administration, the Russian foreign minister, saying Washington's move is fraught with grave consequences in terms of regional peace and stability.

The Russia defense ministry saying the act was short-sighted and will bring negative consequences for the entire international security system. I mean, what the Russians are most concerned about is that this could launch a spiral of retaliation, which draws the United States and Iran into a direct confrontation, which could lead to the Iranian government being toppled, regime change taking place.

The Russians have seen it take place in Iraq, in Libya, in other countries as well where they've been closely aligned to, only to see those regimes replaced by more pro-Western governments. They've seen it in other countries. They do not want to see that happen in Iran.

So there are temporary boons for the Russians this has taken place, not least a spike in the oil price, that's an unexpected windfall for Russian coffers. But they have to be balanced with the long-term uncertainty that this creates -- Becky.

ANDERSON: Matthew is in Russia with perspective from there. I want to get you to London. Lina Khatib is the Middle East and North Africa program director for Chatham House.

In Tehran, the killing of Qasem Soleimani is an act of war. In Washington, Donald Trump said his decision to green light a U.S. drone attack that killed Iran's military chief was to prevent a war.

Which is it?

LINA KHATIB, CHATHAM HOUSE: Well, if you look at what the United States is trying to do, they are saying, the Trump administration, that they want to restart negotiations with Iran, negotiations not about the nuclear deal but about Iran's regional role as well.

And an American official said yesterday that, in killing Soleimani, the United States is speaking to Iran in a language that the regime understands. And that's why the official said, who was anonymous, that -- he said, it is not expected that Iran is going to launch large-scale retaliation.

So I think this is what the U.S. is thinking when it comes to saying it's not about starting a war. It's about stopping a war.

ANDERSON: Hezbollah's Hassan Nasrallah has condemned Soleimani's killing. He says the Americans will not be able to achieve their goals in the region by killing him; rather, all of Soleimani's goals will be achieved, he said.

Is he right?

KHATIB: He is right in the sense that, despite the major role that Soleimani had, ultimately, the actions of the IRGC and the Iranian state are not about one man alone. He's already been replaced by his deputy. The plans that he had masterminded can be implemented. So technical speaking that one man's death does not mean the end of the Middle East. This is what Hezbollah is hinting, that this is going to be a minor

loss for Iran. The big picture remains Iran is continuing to pursue its goals of influence in the Levant.

anxious In the short term, Lebanon could be one of the flashpoints, should Iran decide to respond aggressively. We can discuss momentarily whether you believe there will be a response quickly.

But where do you see this going?

Do you see Lebanon in play at this point?

KHATIB: I personally do not think that Lebanon right now is in any position that would be optimal for Iran to activate as a way to exact revenge for Soleimani's killing. We have to remember that Iran has faced such assassinations in the past of high-level officials and did not immediately retaliate.

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KHATIB: One of those is one of Hezbollah's own, assassinated in Damascus a decade ago. At the time there was no direct retaliation, despite many threats by Iran and Hezbollah to do so.

The same with the killing of Hamdiya's son in Syria a few years ago. And I could go on with these examples. It's not necessarily the case that Iran is going to retaliate immediately. So I'm not too worried about Lebanon.

I think to be very honest, Iran did not see this coming. The taunting on Twitter by the Ayatollah Khamenei of President Trump, saying you cannot do anything, has come back to haunt the ayatollah. I don't think Iran's thought the U.S. can go that far.

And I think Iran is best now just taking a bit of time to calculate its next steps because now President Trump has proven that he is very unpredictable and that even Iran, you know, cannot kind of anticipate his next move. And that is something that is likely to cause a lot of nervousness in Iran, at least.

ANDERSON: Analysis with Lina Khatib from London. Thank you.

Our correspondents are fanned out across the region. We take you to Tehran in Iran. Next as the breaking news coverage continues, the latest on how the country is reacting to the U.S. strike of their top commander.

These images are of the funeral processions for Qasem Soleimani and those killed with him on Friday. As these funerals are underway, how Israel is reacting to the killing of Iran's top general. Stay with us.

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UNIDENTIFIED MALE (voice-over): This is CNN breaking news.

ANDERSON: Welcome back to our viewers in the United States and around the world, wherever you are watching, you are more than welcome. I'm Becky Anderson. And this is CNN NEWSROOM.

And I want to catch up on our breaking news at this hour, throngs of people jamming the streets of the Iraq capital for processions and funerals for victims of the U.S. strike on Baghdad airport on Friday.

One of those victims, Iran's top military commander, Qasem Soleimani. U.S. president Donald Trump said he directed the strike on the Quds Force's general because Soleimani was plotting a major attack on Americans, he said.

Iran is vowing revenge for what it calls an act of war. Ramin Mostaghim is joining us from Tehran.

Just because the Iranian officials vow revenge, Ramin, does that mean we should expect a response anytime soon?

RAMIN MOSTAGHIM, "L.A. TIMES": No, not at all. It's not the first time that there is a battlefield proxy war between Iran and United States of America. It's been several times before.

Based on experience in the past, we can expect it, anytime but I mean, the officials here are not in rush, because they have decided what to do and they try to catch America by surprise.

So it's not a big deal for them. They will find a suitable time to take revenge. As people in the streets express revenge, revenge, revenge. But I can tell you that the immediate fallout of this assassination or martyrdom, as they call it here, is a blessing in disguise, because this divided society now is unified and all of the divisions, because of the domestic problems, are removed.

As the rain falls -- snow falls in Tehran, it removes the pollutants in the skies. So this is a blessing in disguise. And the blood of this martyr, as they call it here, is removing all the division from a divided society and is unifying the rival competitors here in domestic politics.

So, so far, so good. And it serves the purposes of the Iranian officials and Iranian people who had some problems last month together.

ANDERSON: Right. Ramin, he was reviled in the U.S., where he is accused of having American soldiers' blood on his hands. But as you point out, Qasem Soleimani revered by many in Iran, the supreme leader himself, for years, referring to Soleimani as a living martyr.

Why? MOSTAGHIM: Because he is revered here among the middle class, secular part of society even, because he, as a hero, fought the daish, ISIS in the regions. And that is a main concern for the middle class here because unwanted consequences of this assassination may be resurgence and re-emergence, I mean, emerging of daish in Iraq and Syria again.

So he is hero, because he has fought with daish and now he's revered for that among the secular blocks of society, let alone the conservatives and grassroots who are admiring him as a hero, adoring him as a martyr -- Becky.

ANDERSON: Ramin, thank you, Ramin is in Tehran for you.

CNN's Oren Liebermann also joining me.

You are at the Israel-Lebanese border, a potential flashpoint in any Iranian response.

What chance at this point?

OREN LIEBERMANN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: At this point, that chance seems very low of reaction in the immediate future and perhaps even longer term.

Because of that, at least it seems at this point, Israel's security assessment is that there are no more additional restrictions or limitations on civilians at the Syrian-Lebanese border.

It doesn't mean the border is calm or peaceful in any way. It is always tense but there are no restrictions here. That being said, because of the security situation, Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu cut short his trip to Greece, a state visit that was, and returned to the country. And the defense minister held a security assessment.

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LIEBERMANN: Everyone here is well aware that one of Iran's options for responding is to target Israel. It may not be the most likely response; U.S. forces in Iraq are much closer and Saudi Arabia is a more vulnerable target.

But Israel, perhaps, one of the more tempting targets, especially as the strongest U.S. ally in the region. And to do that would not be difficult. Iran's most powerful proxy in the area, Hezbollah, is behind me in Lebanon. Its stronghold is in southern Lebanon, where Israel estimates it has an arsenal of more than 100,000 rockets and missiles that it could train on Israel.

But even that's not Iran's only option. It could use proxies in Syria and Islamic Jihad in Gaza where there are options and there's a mourning tent for Qasem Soleimani. So Iran has options if it chooses to go in this direction. As of now, Israel doesn't believe Iran will strike imminently.

Many here have been quiet at this point, perhaps not to provoke Iran or Iran's proxies.

The speculation now is, did Netanyahu know this strike was coming?

He spoke with secretary of state Mike Pompeo earlier in the week and then he said a day later that this is a stormy region with very, very dramatic things happening in it. He also backed all of the U.S. actions up until now and said the U.S. has the right to defend itself.

After the killing of Soleimani, he also said, just like Israel, the U.S. has the right to defend itself. So there is that speculation that Netanyahu and perhaps others knew there was going to be a strike against Soleimani at some point.

For Israel, Soleimani was public enemy number one, he was the guy behind the Iran strategies and its expansionism, its aggression in sorry and around the region. It's quite often that Netanyahu and other Israeli officials would name-check Soleimani and threaten him in a way.

In fact, a few months ago, they said he should be careful with his words and even more careful with his actions.

ANDERSON: Oren Liebermann on the Israeli-Lebanese border. Thank you.

Martin Indyk is a distinguished fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations with expertise on the Middle East and a former U.S. special ambassador to Israel and a former U.S. special envoy for Israeli- Palestinian negotiations, joining me today in New York.

I just want you to have a listen to what the U.S. secretary of state had to say yesterday, in the wake of this U.S. drone strike, which took out Iran's military chief in Iraq. Have a listen.

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POMPEO: The world's a much safer place today. And I can assure you that Americans in the region are much safer today after the demise of Qasem Soleimani.

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ANDERSON: Well, you responded on Twitter, "Famous last words?"

Martin, what do you think the risks are for this region?

MARTIN INDYK, COUNCIL ON FOREIGN RELATIONS: Well, in particular, the idea that Americans are going to be safer as a result of this attack is hard to believe, simply because Americans are quite vulnerable across the region, especially our troops and our personnel in Iraq but very much elsewhere in the region and across the world where, via Hezbollah and other Revolutionary Guard capabilities, Americans are fairly soft targets, not necessarily embassies.

But since retaliation has been vowed by ayatollah, the ayatollah, I think that we have to assume that Americans, particularly high-level officials like ambassadors and generals, are now fair game. ANDERSON: Well, as the dust settles and the rhetoric quietens down, I understand your concern that Americans could be, may be fair game in this region. When I say this region, I'm broadcasting from Abu Dhabi in the UAE. And you make a very good point.

But I just wonder, as the dust settles and this sort of oxygen dissipates from this extremely harsh rhetoric we have heard from the Iranians, whether you think there's also a chance that any response may be somewhat limited or whether, indeed, you believe the Iranians need to respond?

I think they certainly made the Americans look like an unreliable partner once again in this Middle East region.

INDYK: I think unlike the way that the American decision seems to have been made, the Iranians will act with a great deal of deliberation and calculation. I actually -- these may be my famous last words.

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INDYK: But I don't think they've got to have an immediate response to this. When the Israelis assassinated the head of the Hezbollah and a partner of Soleimani some years ago, it took quite a bit of time before the Iranians responded. But they did respond, including with attacks around the world on Israeli targets.

So I think they will wait and reap the dividend, particularly in Iraq, from the American action because the greatest achievement for Soleimani, his death would be something that he hadn't yet achieved in his life, which was to get U.S. troops out of Iraq and Syria.

And now, Iran stands a good chance with the Iraqi parliament debating the American presence in Iraq, that the assassination of Soleimani actually may result in greater pressure on the Americans to leave Iraq.

And since Donald Trump wants to do that anyway, that would be a huge strategic gain for Iran because as a result of this, the U.S. no longer has the presence of Iraq and Syria.

ANDERSON: We are at the beginning of a new year, the beginning of a new decade, crystal ball watching here, sir. You've been around in this region for an awfully long time.

What does your experience tell you will happen next, this year and beyond?

INDYK: What my experience tells me, Becky, is that it's the law of unintended consequences, particularly in the Middle East, where everything is connected.

And one big act, as this has been, knocking of one of the most senior officials in the Iranian hierarchy will have a range of unintended consequences that I fear will have a profoundly negative effects on American influence in the region. I can't tell you exactly where it's going to happen although I think

Iraq and Syria where Iran has assets and strategic prizes (ph) that I just outlined, are the most likely places that we're going to see action.

But we could also see American soft targets around the world now placed in jeopardy, particularly high-level officials. And the Iranians have shown that they have capabilities to hit back in ways that can hurt us.

So I think, at a minimum, we are going to see that. But I fear for America's strategic position in the Middle East, as a result of the unintended but logical consequences of Donald Trump's action here.

ANDERSON: Middle East times forecast by former ambassador Martin Indyk, a good friend of the show. Martin, thank you very much.

We are looking at live pictures in Najaf in Iraq. As we continue to monitor these images for the funeral processions and services for Qasem Soleimani, Iran's top military chief ,who was killed alongside 10 others in a U.S. drone attack in Baghdad airport on Friday. More on the fallout from that killing is just ahead.

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ANDERSON: Let's get you back up to date on our breaking news. Supporters of the Iranian commander and others killed in a U.S. strike are gathering on the streets in Iraq. Thousands mourning the death of Qasem Soleimani in funeral processions across Baghdad and in other Iraqi cities.

Iran is vowing to respond to the killings but it's not yet clear how or when. U.S. defense officials tell CNN that thousands of additional troops will be deployed to the region.

Well, there's no doubt that his death will have ripple effects across the world. But in the Middle East in particular. So I want to turn to our CNN international correspondent Sam Kiley who's with me here.

I was talking to Martin Indyk, who has probably forgotten more about this region more than most of us will ever know, with respect. He talked about the law of intended consequences off the back of this killing when I asked him what he thought might happen next. I saw you nodding away as you listened to that conversation.

SAM KILEY, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, let's go for the optimistic option. What you've had from the Obama administration is an unreliable ally for those pro-American in the region, such as this nation, Saudi Arabia. And now, you've got an unpredictable one. And we've seen Qatar moving

very quickly send Al Thani in, to go and see the foreign minister in Iran to try and de-escalate because there has been this growing sense across the Gulf region that they have to try to come up with some local fixes of these very tough situations ahead of some significant conflagration.

So one of the results of this could be the breaking away from the total U.S. influence on the region and the local solutions to local problems. That may be a fantasy but it is a diplomatic necessity, particularly for the smaller nations like the UAE.

And the other side of that, we were talking off the air, you've got a situation in which Trump is comparing the death of Soleimani to the killing of bin Laden or al-Baghdadi. It's not. This guy was the head of a military organism, highly sophisticated one.

His deputy has been his deputy for 20 years, could seamlessly step in. They have tentacles that reach all over the world, and a false state, an oil rich nation, albeit very economically disenfranchised at the moment behind it.

So the Iranians have a lot of options. What we're tending to make the mistake of, I think, is seeing all of through the, was this the right decision taken by Trump, from the American perspective.

From the Iranian perspective, they've regained control of the streets at least in the short term, both on the streets of Iraq and --

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ANDERSON: Which they've been protesting in Iraq and Beirut, Iranian influence in these sovereign states.

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ANDERSON: What then does the removal of Qasem Soleimani from this theater, a man who has been described by many as the most senior operative in the Middle East for years, if not a couple of decades, what does his removal mean?

KILEY: It means that the Iranians will make good, I think, on their very vocal statements and will take revenge for this. But it is a dish that they will eat cold. And they will take their time.

Martin was making that point, Ramin was making that point out of Tehran. So you've got a completely -- you've now got a motivational energy coming from behind what the Trump administration was right to point out, has been a decades-long campaign of violent anti- Americanism.

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ANDERSON: This is a guy that had American soldiers' blood on his hands. KILEY: This guy was a killer. And his killing comes at the -- not at the end but amid rising escalations and some would say unpunished escalations from the Iranians most recently, blamed by the U.K. and others, for directly firing rockets from Iranian territory onto Saudi targets. There was no direct comeback after that.

So you've got these repeated attacks on tankers and so on. So this is a punishment attack on the U.S. There will be a counterattack.

ANDERSON: Sam Kiley is in the house with what can only be described as expert analysis. Fantastic, Sam, thank you so much indeed. Your support is really important.

We'll be back after a short break to Baghdad where the killing of Iran's military commander has triggered a massive funeral procession, not just there but in Najaf as well.

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ANDERSON: Well, thousands of people have been slowly making their way through the streets of Baghdad, in the funeral procession for Qasem Soleimani and others killed Friday by a U.S. drone.

Here in Iraq's prime minister was there. Soleimani was Iran's top military commander, not all the Iraqis welcomed his influence in their country. But many are angry at the U.S. for killing Soleimani on Iraqi soil.

Iran has vowed to avenge his death. U.S. officials claim Soleimani was killed to prevent an imminent attack on Americans. And this happening as we speak. Supporters gathering to show their respect for Soleimani and others killed in that drone attack Friday in Najaf.

Well, I'll leave you with these images. That wraps this hour of CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Becky Anderson in Abu Dhabi in UAE in our coverage unfolding since the U.S. strike killed the Iranian military commander continues. CNN NEWSROOM with Christi Paul and Martin Savidge is just ahead.