Team News Riveting
Iran is reportedly plotting to assassinate the US ambassador to South Africa to avenge the killing of top Iranian general Qassem Soleimani.
According to reports based on inputs compiled by the US intelligence agencies, Ambassador Lana Marks has been identified as a target because of her closeness to US President Donald Trump.
Marks, 66, a Palm Beach, Florida-based luxury fashion and handbag designer, is a long-time friend of the US president and was a member of Trump’s exclusive Mar-a-Lago club in Florida. She was appointed ambassador in 2018.
Marks was born and raised in South Africa and was CEO of the Lana Marks Collections design firm, which caters to celebrities. She grew up in the city of Port Elizabeth, where her family was prominent members of the city’s Jewish community.
Trump ordered the drone strike in Iraq on January 3 that killed Soleimani, the head of the extraterritorial Quds Force of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps and one of Iran’s most powerful officials. In response to the drone strike, Iran fired volleys of ballistic missiles at Iraqi bases housing US troops.
There were no reported casualties at the time but it has since been revealed that dozens of soldiers developed brain injuries from the blasts.
Iran’s target on diplomats close to Donald Trump could also impact the ensuing election in the US. Experts said the attack now could serve the purpose of undermining perceptions of US power.
Besides, it would also jolt Washington’s efforts to realign the Middle East against the ayatollahs with normalization deals between Israel and the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain.
The UAE and Bahrain are both ruled by Sunnis who want to work with Israel and the US against Iranian hegemonic plans for the region.
An assassination of a US ambassador could also undermine Trump in his election campaign or pull him into a new round of conflict, just as he is trying to claim that he has put Iran on ice.
