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Iranian Documentary Shows Soleimani Touring Saddam Hussein’s Palace

Soleimani inspects a ceiling in Saddam Hussein’s palace
Soleimani inspects a ceiling in Saddam Hussein’s palace
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Iranian Documentary Shows Soleimani Touring Saddam Hussein’s Palace

Soleimani inspects a ceiling in Saddam Hussein’s palace
Soleimani inspects a ceiling in Saddam Hussein’s palace

A video showing Qassem Soleimani, the late commander of Iran’s Quds Force, exploring one of Saddam Hussein’s former palaces has stirred significant controversy on social media.

The 30-second video, released by the Tasnim news agency, shows Soleimani and Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis, who was the deputy head of the Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF), an Iran-backed paramilitary group in Iraq, walking through a ruined palace once owned by the former Iraqi president.

Tasnim, which is affiliated with Iran’s Revolutionary Guard, said the footage, aired for the first time, is part of an Iranian documentary.

Also in the video are Ahmed al-Asadi, Iraq’s current Labor Minister, and Mohammed Sahib al-Daraji, a former Minister of Construction and Housing.

On January 3, 2020, Soleimani was killed alongside al-Muhandis in a US airstrike near Baghdad International Airport.

Years earlier, the US Treasury Department had placed Soleimani on its blacklist for his alleged “terrorist” activities in the region.

Later, an Iranian TV station (TW) released the full documentary titled “The Builder... and The Destroyer,” focusing on Qassem Soleimani and Saddam Hussein.

The video doesn’t specify when Soleimani visited Saddam’s palace, but the presence of Iraqi officials suggests it was after 2014.

The footage shows Soleimani inspecting the palace’s damage and touching a marble column, with al-Muhandis explaining the details.

The documentary also includes clips of Saddam Hussein in Baghdad shortly before the 2003 US invasion, with Iraqis discussing their inability to visit Shiite shrines under the Baath regime.

The documentary highlights the role of Iran’s Revolutionary Guard in restoring Shiite shrines in Najaf and Karbala, which were damaged in 1991.

It features Iranian officials, including former Iranian ambassador to Baghdad Iraj Masjedi, who discuss the Revolutionary Guard’s efforts in expanding and developing these shrines.

The film presents these efforts as a way to enhance annual Muharram visits, which were suppressed under the Baath regime. It also describes the Revolutionary Guard's fight against ISIS as a mission to protect Shiite shrines in Iraq and Syria.

At the end of the documentary, Soleimani is seen at the Sayyida Zainab shrine in Syria, receiving a key from a soldier.

Iraqis reacted strongly to the video, with many criticizing officials for letting Soleimani enter Saddam’s palace. Bloggers pointed out that the US, which invaded Iraq, allowed Iran to gain influence there and later was responsible for Soleimani’s assassination.

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Wiretapping Scandal Continues to Rock Iraq

Two prominent members of the Coordination Framework were targeted by the wiretapping network. (Government media)
Two prominent members of the Coordination Framework were targeted by the wiretapping network. (Government media)
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Wiretapping Scandal Continues to Rock Iraq

Two prominent members of the Coordination Framework were targeted by the wiretapping network. (Government media)
Two prominent members of the Coordination Framework were targeted by the wiretapping network. (Government media)

“Several politicians” were the victims of the wiretapping network that was busted at the Iraqi prime minister’s office, informed sources told Asharq Al-Awsat.

The investigations revealed that two prominent members of the ruling pro-Iran Coordination Framework are among the targets, while it seems that the wiretapping was aimed at politically extorting its victims.

News emerged last week over the arrest of a wiretapping network at PM Mohammed Shia al-Sudani's office. Detainees included employees and cyber security officers working at the office.

Local reports said the network had also spied on Faiq Zidan, head of the Iraqi Supreme Judicial Council, but he denied the claims.

Investigations with the main suspect in the network appear to have led to other partners, revealed information obtained by Asharq Al-Awsat.

Confessions by the detainees revealed that the network, which began operating in late 2023, was charged with spying on senior state officials with the aim of political extortion, said sources.

Observers have described the case a “major breach of the government.”

Sudani issued on August 20 a statement saying that he ordered the formation of an investigation committee against an employee at his office for supporting a “position that is harmful to some officials and several lawmakers.”

Legal measures have been taken against that employee, but the government hasn’t issued a follow-up statement yet about its further proceedings.

Mohammed Juhi, aide to the PM’s media director, has been viewed as the main suspect in the wiretapping case. He has since been suspended until investigations are completed.

Reports have said he used to work at the Health Ministry before assuming his post at the PM’s office. His uncle, Judge Raed Juhi, used to work at former PM Mustafa al-Kadhimi's office.

Seven suspects, including Mohammed Juhi and an intelligence officer, have since been arrested in the wiretapping case.

The New Region website said Mohammed Juhi was only a “tool, not the real head” of the spy network.

“He (Juhi) was reached by following a link to one of the pages associated with him personally. Following the link led the National Security personnel directly to his home inside the Green Zone, where he was arrested,” it reported according to sources.

The report also said Zidan was among the targets of the network.

Zidan’s quick denial of the reports only fueled speculation among Iraqis that he was indeed a victim of the network.

Informed sources told Asharq Al-Awsat that while the network did target politicians and officials, it did not reach Zidan.

They confirmed that two prominent members of the Coordination Framework were indeed targeted.

MP Mustafa Sanad said last week that the network had spied on the telephones of several lawmakers and politicians, including himself.

It was also controlling electronic armies, fabricating fake news, and assuming the identity of politicians and businessmen.

The network has confessed to its crimes, he added, while revealing that a lot of pressure was being exerted to release the suspects. The judge handling their case has not yielded to the pressure.

Sources close to the Coordination Framework told Asharq Al-Awsat that the wiretapping case has “angered the alliance and it is trying to keep its details from going public because it is a great embarrassment to the government.”

They did not rule out the possibility that senior officials at the PM’s office may be involved in the network over disputes with influential judges.