On the third day of 2020, the U.S. Department of Defense confirmed the killing of Gen. Qassem Soleimani, commander of Iran's Quds Force. Few in Tokyo seemed to care about his assassination as the nation celebrated the first New Year's holiday in the new era of Reiwa.
Initial reaction of the Tokyo-based media was low-toned at best. As of Monday, only one editorial had been written about the U.S. attack in major Japanese newspapers. Instead, stories about former Nissan Chairman Carlos Ghosn, who is believed to have fled Japan on Dec. 29 using a French passport that he was required to carry around in Japan, dominated the media's attention.
I never forget the moment of surprise and anxiety upon watching CNN's rather sensational breaking news on a drone attack against the Quds Force commander in Baghdad. As a former Arabic language officer who had been stationed twice in Iraq, I knew exactly how minacious Soleimani's death could be for the region.