Arrest of pro-Iran militia commander stirs up tensions in Iraq
“Any arrest case should run its course, as goes for any Iraqi,” tweeted UN Special Representative to Iraq Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert.
Thursday 27/05/2021
Popular Mobilization Forces, PMF, patrol outside the heavily fortified Green Zone, where the Prime Minister’s headquarters is located in Baghdad, May 26, 2021. (AP)
BAGHDAD – Tensions mounted in Iraq’s capital on Wednesday after the arrest of a militia commander on terrorism charges, prompting a dangerous showdown by the detainee’s paramilitary supporters and the Iraqi government.
The confrontation began after Iraqi security forces arrested at dawn militia leader Qassim Mahmoud Musleh based on a judicial investigation and arrest warrant on terrorism charges, Iraq’s military said in a statement. The statement said he was being questioned by a joint investigative committee.