Today, the Iraqi judiciary issued an arrest warrant for the outgoing US President Donald Trump, against the background of the assassination of Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis, deputy head of the Iraqi Popular Mobilization Forces, and Qassem Soleimani, commander of the Iranian Quds Force, in an American raid near Baghdad airport on January 3, 2020.
The Supreme Judicial Council in Iraq announced - through its website this morning - that the decision was issued by the competent judge in the Rusafa Investigation Court, who is in charge of the investigation into the assassination of the engineer and his companions in accordance with the provisions of Article 406 of the Iraqi Penal Code.
The council clarified that the arrest warrant issued against Trump on charges of premeditated murder, which carries the death penalty upon conviction;
It was issued after the judge recorded the testimonies of the plaintiffs from the al-Muhandis family, indicating that the investigation in the case is still underway to find out the other participants in the assassination, whether they are Iraqis or foreigners.
The effects of the American raid on Baghdad airport that killed Soleimani and the engineer (Iraqi Security Media Cell)
The Associated Press said the decision was unlikely to be implemented, but symbolic in the final days of the Trump presidency.
The assassinations of Muhandis and Soleimani sparked a diplomatic crisis, and led to strained relations between the United States and Iraq, and prompted the Iraqi parliament to pass a non-binding resolution to pressure the government to expel foreign forces from the country.
Since then, the Iranian-backed factions have intensified their attacks against the US presence in Iraq.
This led to threats by Washington to close its diplomatic mission in Baghdad.