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Iraq Ex-PM Reveals Details of Phone Call with Trump before Soleimani’s Assassination

Former Prime Minister of Iraq Adil Abdul-Mahdi, Asharq Al-Awsat
Former Prime Minister of Iraq Adil Abdul-Mahdi, Asharq Al-Awsat
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Iraq Ex-PM Reveals Details of Phone Call with Trump before Soleimani’s Assassination

Former Prime Minister of Iraq Adil Abdul-Mahdi, Asharq Al-Awsat
Former Prime Minister of Iraq Adil Abdul-Mahdi, Asharq Al-Awsat

Iraq’s former Prime Minister Adel Abdul-Mahdi has revealed the details of a phone call conversation he had with US President Donald Trump on New Year’s Eve (2020) regarding the attack on the US embassy in Baghdad during the last two days of 2019.

“Trump called me last New Year's Eve at around nine o'clock Baghdad time, and thanked us for ending the storming of the American embassy and asked me whether the attackers were Iraqis or Iranians, so I told him they were Iraqis who objected to the US air strikes on armed factions on the border with Syria,” Abdul-Mahdi said in a documentary feature on the assassination of the commander of Iran’s Quds Force, General Qasem Soleimani and Popular Mobilization Forces Deputy Chief Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis.

On January 3, 2020, a US drone strike targeted a convoy transporting Soleimani and al-Muhandis at the Baghdad International Airport.

“Americans do not know the Iranians well, but the Iraqis are the ones who know them well,” Abdul-Mahdi added, quoting Trump.

The ex-prime minister added that he told the US leader that neither the Iranians nor the US want a war, and proposed either holding direct negotiations with Iran or establishing tacit agreements, with the latter being a popular approach since 2003.

Subsequently, Trump admitted to Abdul-Mahdi that Iraq is a good negotiator and that the US is prepared for anything Baghdad can achieve in this regard.

“There was approval and an official invitation for Soleimani to come to Iraq for discussions,” Abdul-Mahdi said.

Noting that Soleimani’s assassination could not have been decided and planned within a day or two, Abdul-Mahdi was skeptic towards whether Trump held sincere intentions for negotiating with Iran, or that it was all a play acted out less than 48 hours before launching the strike on the airport.

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Iraq Steers Clear of US Retaliation for Ain al-Asad Attack

A military trainer from the international coalition shakes hands with an Iraqi soldier in a training camp (CENTCOM file photo)
A military trainer from the international coalition shakes hands with an Iraqi soldier in a training camp (CENTCOM file photo)
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Iraq Steers Clear of US Retaliation for Ain al-Asad Attack

A military trainer from the international coalition shakes hands with an Iraqi soldier in a training camp (CENTCOM file photo)
A military trainer from the international coalition shakes hands with an Iraqi soldier in a training camp (CENTCOM file photo)

Iraqi Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein stated that Iraq successfully used diplomatic channels to prevent a potential American response to the attack on the Ain al-Asad base, which hosts advisors from the US-led international coalition.

In an interview with Al-Hadath channel, Hussein confirmed that Baghdad had managed to stop Washington from retaliating against the attack on the base.

He also said that ongoing discussions between Baghdad and Washington regarding the withdrawal of coalition forces are influenced by regional circumstances, heightened tensions, and the possibility of conflict, which have significantly changed the status quo.

The Iraqi minister added: “We are taking both internal and external steps to avoid war. Pushing toward war is dangerous, and both the government and political parties are fully aware of this.”

He stressed that the government and parliament hold the authority over decisions of war and peace, reiterating Iraq’s commitment to safeguarding foreign advisors and diplomats.

The Iraqi military base, which hosts American advisors, was struck by two rockets launched by an unidentified group calling itself the “Revolutionaries.”

Security forces arrested individuals believed to be involved in the attack after seizing the rocket launch pad. However, within a week, the authorities announced their release, over what they said was insufficient evidence.

The United States announced that several American soldiers stationed at the base as part of the international coalition's mission in Iraq were injured.

On Thursday, the Iraqi Foreign Ministry stated that Baghdad had decided to postpone the announcement of the end of the international coalition’s mission due to the “recent developments.”

Iraqi media reported that the Iraqi Prime Minister had been preparing to announce the coalition’s withdrawal from the country. This was confirmed by former Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki during a meeting with journalists in Baghdad, where he said: “The international coalition was scheduled to withdraw according to a timeline agreed upon by both parties, if not for the bombing that targeted the Ain al-Asad base.”