President Trump confirmed that “last night, at my direction, the U.S. military successfully executed a flawless precision strike that killed the number-one terrorist anywhere in the world, [IRGC Qods Force Commander] Qassem Soleimani”. Trump went on to assert that Soleimeni “was plotting imminent and sinister attacks on American diplomats and military personnel, but we caught him in the act and terminated him”. “We took action last night to stop a war. We did not take action to start a war”, Trump added, warning that “if Americans anywhere are threatened, we have all of those targets already fully identified, and I am ready and prepared to take whatever action is necessary. And that, in particular, refers to Iran”.