Iranians cross a street, next to a poster of Iran’s top anti-terror commander Qassem Soleimani and Iraqi commander Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis, in the capital Tehran on December 28, 2021. The two commanders were killed in a US drone strike in 2020.
Tehran- The secretary-general of Iran’s Human Rights Office says three countries inside the region and three outside were involved in the 2020 assassination of Iran’s top anti-terror commander Qassem Soleimani, with former US president Donald Trump topping the list of criminals behind the terrorist attack.
In remarks on Wednesday, Kazem Gharibabadi pointed out that because the assassination was conducted by the US government, most of the perpetrators are American.
“The instigator of this terrorist act is the American regime, which has caused a large number of defendants in the case to be American,” he said, days before the second anniversary of Lieutenant General Qassem Soleimani’s assassination in neighboring Iraq.
Gharibabadi explained that more than 120 perpetrators have been identified, arrest warrants have been issued for more than 40, and judicial representatives have been sent to 9 countries for pursuing the case.
“Three countries in the region and three countries outside the region are involved in the case of the assassination of martyrs Soleimani and Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis.”
Noting that Trump was the main perpetrator of the heinous act, the Iranian official said an international will and the cooperation of Interpol are needed to arrest the criminals.
Along with his companions, including the deputy chief of Iraq’s Popular Mobilization Units (PMU) Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis, General Soleimani was targeted in a US drone strike near the Baghdad International Airport on January 5, 2020.
The US assassination, directly ordered by Trump, drew a wave of condemnations from officials and movements throughout the world and triggered huge public protests across the region.
Early on January 8, Iran’s Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) targeted the US-run Ain al-Assad airbase in Iraq’s western province of Anbar with a barrage of missiles to retaliate the assassination of General Soleimani.
Iran says its retaliation is not over.
According to Gharibabadi, the trial of the perpetrators will be held in two months.
“The indictment of the perpetrators behind the martyr’s assassination will be sent to the Tehran Court of Justice in two months,” he said.
He also said Iran and Iraq have set up a joint investigation committee to follow up on the case, adding that the two sides have exchanged information on the US-orchestrated crime.
“We have asked Iraq to speed up the investigation so that the necessary verdicts can be issued [sooner],” Gharibabadi remarked.
The Judiciary official also criticized international forums for their silence in the face of the atrocious act.
“As long as these double standards prevail in the world, administering justice will not be easy, but we have a responsibility to take action and try to persuade global public opinion, regardless of those contradictions and double standards,” he added.
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