Judiciary Spokesman:

Iran Preparing Lawsuit against US for Assassination of General Soleimani

Iran's Judiciary Spokesman Gholamhossein Esmayeeli said that his country will file a lawsuit against the US over the targeted assassination of Commander of IRGC Qods Force Lieutenant General Qassem Soleimani.

News ID: 449661

Date: 18 March 2020 - 10:53

RNA - “The Judiciary has opened a special case at Tehran prosecutor’s office to prosecute those who have ordered, carried out and collaborated in this inhuman act,” Esmayeeli said in a televised press conference on Tuesday.

He added that an advisory delegation, including representatives of the judiciary, the intelligence ministry, the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC), the Judiciary’s Human Rights Headquarters and the IRGC Quds Force, has held a meeting with Iraq’s Judiciary officials to coordinate the necessary cooperation to prosecute those behind the crime.

Esmayeeli said that a delegation from Iraq is also due to visit Iran to pursue mutual cooperation on the issue, assuring the nation that efforts will continue until punishing the criminals.

Lieutenant General Soleimani was assassinated in a US drone strike on Baghdad International Airport in Iraq on January 3.

The airstrike also martyred Deputy Commander of Iraq's Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF) Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis. The two were martyred in an American airstrike that targeted their vehicle on the road to the airport.

Five Iranian and five Iraqi militaries were martyred by missiles fired by the US drone at Baghdad International Airport.

On January 8, the IRGC Aerospace Force started heavy ballistic missile attacks on US Ein Al-Assad airbase in Southwestern Iraq near the border with Syria and a US operated airbase in Erbil in retaliation for the US assassination of General Soleimani.

According to Fars News Agency, Ein Al-Assad is an airbase with a 4km runway at 188m altitude from sea levels, which is the main and the largest US airbase in Iraq. Early reports said the radar systems and missile defense shields in Ein Al-Assad failed to operate and intercept the Iranian missiles. Unofficial reports said the US army's central radar systems at Ein Al-Assad had been jammed by electronic warfare.

The second IRGC reprisal attack targeted a US military base near Erbil airport in Iraqi Kurdistan Region in the second leg of "Martyr Soleimani" reprisal operation.

Iraq said the attacks had not taken any toll from its army men stationed at these two bases. The US army had blocked entrance into Ein Al-Assad to everyone, including the Iraqi army.

It was the first direct attack on the US army ever since world war two.

The IRGC officials said none of the missiles had been intercepted.

847/940