Iraq References Arrest Warrant for Trump During 3rd Anniversary of Soleimani's Assassination
Iraq’s Supreme Judicial Council first issued an arrest warrant for former President Donald Trump in 2021, but on Thursday, it referred to Trump still being wanted for Qussam Soleimani’s assassination. Both Soleimani and Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis were Iranian-backed, paramilitary leaders and were killed by a US drone airstrike in Baghdad on January 3, 2020. The assassinations were seen as retribution for attacks on US targets in Iraq, killing one American and injuring four other servicemen, and an attack on the US Embassy in Baghdad.
It remains unclear if the comments regarding Trump are a reiteration of the original warrant based on Soleimani’s killing, or include new action.
Al-Monitor reports:
The council’s president, Faiq Zidan, said that Trump is wanted for his “crime” in relation to the assassination of the “leaders of victory” and said an arrest warrant was issued. He made the remarks in front of a picture of Soleimani and Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis, the former leader of the Iran-backed Kitaib Hezbollah militia in Iraq.
Last week, memorial statutes were erected near the site of the airstrike.
On Monday, a balloon with Soleimani’s and Muhandis’ images was seen floating in Baghdad close to the US Embassy, marked with the words “Blood for Blood.” On Tuesday, protests were planned near the Baghdad airport ahead of the three-year marker of the pairs’ deaths.
This week, the Iranian judiciary said it identified 94 US citizens allegedly involved in the assassination. Notably, former UN Ambassador Nikki Haley’s name appears on such a “most wanted list,” which was tweeted out on Monday from Irani state-sponsored media.
You can watch Trump’s January 3, 2020, statement on the Soleimani killing, via C-Span, below:
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