Iran ‘plotting to kill’ America’s handbag envoy
Iran is plotting to assassinate America’s ambassador to South Africa to avenge the killing of its most powerful general.
Iran is plotting to assassinate America’s ambassador to South Africa to avenge the killing of its most powerful general in a drone strike, according to intelligence papers seen by US officials.
Lana Marks, who designed luxury handbags before she became America’s top diplomat in Africa, was likely to have been singled out for her closeness to US President Donald Trump, the Politico news site reported.
She was a member of Mr Trump’s exclusive Mar-a-Lago club in Florida before she was appointed ambassador a year ago.
The claimed assassination plot is apparently intended to avenge the killing of major general Qassem Soleimani, head of the overseas branch of Iran’s Revolutionary Guard.
Mr Trump vowed on Tuesday that any attack would be met with a devastating response. “Any attack by Iran, in any form, against the United States will be met with an attack on Iran that will be 1000 times greater in magnitude!” the President tweeted.
Secretary of State Mike Pompeo declined to comment directly on the threat, but told Fox News that “the Islamic Republic of Iran has engaged in assassination efforts all across the world”.
“They have assassinated people in Europe and in other parts of the world. We take these … allegations seriously,” he said.
Iranian officials have dismissed the allegation as “custom-ordered, biased and purposeful”. “We advise the American officials to stop resorting to hackneyed and worn-out methods for anti-Iran propaganda,” said Iran’s foreign ministry.
The claim also appeared to surprise the South Africans. “We only became aware of this report this morning,” the government said late on Monday.
US intelligence chiefs are said to have been aware of threats to Ms Marks, 66, since early this year but details had become more specific.
The envoy has been informed of the plot which, according to documents cited by Politico, involves Iran’s embassy in Pretoria. The US embassy said it could make no comment on whether her security had been increased or she had changed her routine.
Intelligence officials have suggested that carrying out an attack in South Africa could be easier than targeting American diplomats in countries where there is more security co-ordination.
Soleimani, 62, oversaw the operations of Iran-backed militias across the Middle East, including in Iraq, where they have waged war on US and allied troops.
Mr Trump ordered the drone strike near Baghdad airport in January after a series of missile attacks on US bases in the country, and an attempt to storm the US embassy in Baghdad. He said the general had been planning further attacks, though White House officials have since given a variety of justifications for the killing.
Iran’s immediate response to the death of Soleimani was a missile attack by the Revolutionary Guard on two bases containing US troops. No one was killed.
While Iran has a history of assassinations on Western soil, targeting a US ambassador would be a new step. South Africa is one of a handful of countries with which it enjoys friendly relations. It seemed unlikely that Tehran would wish to jeopardise these with such a brazen plot, argued Na’eem Jeenah, the director of the Afro-Middle East Centre.
Ms Marks was born in East London, in the Eastern Cape province, where many properties cost less than her sought-after accessories. Her designs include a $US400,000 “Cleopatra Clutch” bag for Chinese actress Li Bingbing.
There was speculation at the time of her appointment that Ms Marks’s charm and networking skills would compensate for her lack of experience in diplomacy and that she was being deployed to repair some of the offence caused by Mr Trump, who has shown little interest in Africa.
In 2018 he described some of its nations as “shitholes” and suggested a wall across the Sahara as a way to deal with Europe’s migration issues.
The Times
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