The Islamic State (IS) group has welcomed the death of Iranian general Qasem Soleimani, the head of the elite Quds Force. In a statement, it described the general’s demise as an act of divine intervention that benefitted jihadists. However, it made no mention at all of the US, which carried out the deadly drone strike against Soleimani in Baghdad on 3 January.

President Donald Trump’s decision to assassinate Gen Soleimani set off a chain of consequences – one of the first was on the unfinished war against jihadists. Almost immediately the US-led coalition fighting IS suspended operations in Iraq. The US and its allies announced that their main job was now defending themselves. From a military point of view, they probably had no choice.(bbc)…[+]