LAPD 'Monitoring' Developments After Iranian Military Commander Qassem Soleimani Killed In Airstrike
LOS ANGELES (CBSLA) — The Los Angeles Police Department says they are monitoring the events developing in Iran after an air strike at Baghdad's international airport killed top Iranian military commander Qassem Soleimani.
Soleimani, the head of Iran's elite Quds military force and one of the most powerful figures in the Islamic Republic, was killed Thursday night in an airstrike in Baghdad, the U.S. Defense Department confirmed to CBS News. With Iran's government vowing "crushing revenge," the U.S. State Department has issued an urgent warning for all Americans in Iraq to leave immediately.
In separate statements, the LAPD and the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department said there is no credible threat to Los Angeles or the surrounding region at this time, but officials will continue to communicate with state, local, federal, and international law enforcement partners.
"The Department is committed to ensuring the safety of our vibrant and diverse community, and we ask every Angeleno to say something if you see something," the LAPD said in the statement.
Southern California is home to a large number of Iranians, one of the biggest populations outside of Iran. Little Persia, a Los Angeles neighborhood, is also known to many locals as "Tehrangeles."
