In the last few months, the Iranian military leader Qasem Soleimani went from being a mysterious man who made no public appearances to a commander whose photos and videos were broadcast after each Iraqi army victory against Islamic State (IS) forces. Soleimani was no longer the “shadow commander,” as Dexter Filkins called him in a 2013 New Yorker article.
Soleimani, commander of Iran's Quds Force, began his emergence into the public eye in Iraqi military and political settings after Mosul fell to IS in June. Al-Monitor has learned from Iraqi political sources that Soleimani has been undeniably engaged in political and military decisions related to Iraq's fight against IS.
