Head of Iraqi Judiciary Defends Performance amid Criticism in Tackling Killing of Protesters

Chief Justice of the Supreme Judicial Council of Iraq, Faiq Zaidan. (INA)
Chief Justice of the Supreme Judicial Council of Iraq, Faiq Zaidan. (INA)
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Head of Iraqi Judiciary Defends Performance amid Criticism in Tackling Killing of Protesters

Chief Justice of the Supreme Judicial Council of Iraq, Faiq Zaidan. (INA)
Chief Justice of the Supreme Judicial Council of Iraq, Faiq Zaidan. (INA)

Chief Justice of the Supreme Judicial Council of Iraq, Faiq Zaidan defended on Thursday the judiciary against massive criticism from the people and local and international rights groups over his handling of and verdicts in several cases, especially those related to the killing and assassination of protesters and activists.

In an interview with the official state news agency (INA), he said the judiciary has issued warrants against the murderers of prominent researcher Hisham al-Hashemi as Thursday marked the one-year anniversary of his murder.

Zaidan did not elaborate over the case that has preoccupied the Iraqi public for a year.

Commenting on the progress in cases of the murder of anti-government protesters, he stated that some death penalties have been issued against officers in Babel and Wasit.

He added, however, that these cases are “complicated” as many sides are involved in them, including political parties eyeing electoral goals.

Months ago, government authorities had announced an official tally of 550 protester deaths in anti-government demonstrations. Thousands of others in Baghdad and central and southern provinces have also suffered critical injuries.

The government had formed teams to probe the violence but they have yet to announce any findings and rulings.

Asked about the release of prominent Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF) official, Qassem Muslih, weeks ago after his arrest on suspicion of involvement in the killing of protesters, Zaidan replied that the judiciary had not succumbed to any pressure to let him go.

Rather, he explained there was insufficient evidence to implicate him in the murder of protesters, including prominent activist Ihab al-Wazni.

Moreover, he revealed that Muslih was not even in Iraq when Wazni was killed and that was why he was released.

The activist was killed in Karbala in May and his family openly accused Muslih of being involved.



Israeli Airstrike South of Beirut Kills at Least 15, Lebanon’s Health Ministry Says

 A building damaged in an Israeli military strike in the town of Jiyeh, south of Beirut, Lebanon, 05 November 2024. (EPA)
A building damaged in an Israeli military strike in the town of Jiyeh, south of Beirut, Lebanon, 05 November 2024. (EPA)
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Israeli Airstrike South of Beirut Kills at Least 15, Lebanon’s Health Ministry Says

 A building damaged in an Israeli military strike in the town of Jiyeh, south of Beirut, Lebanon, 05 November 2024. (EPA)
A building damaged in an Israeli military strike in the town of Jiyeh, south of Beirut, Lebanon, 05 November 2024. (EPA)

An Israeli airstrike that hit an apartment building in a village south of Beirut killed at least 15 people, Lebanon’s Health Ministry said Tuesday.

The ministry said the toll is not final and operations to rescue people from under the rubble are ongoing.

Lebanon’s state news agency said the airstrike hit an area known as Barja just north of the port city of Sidon. It was not immediately clear what the target of the airstrike was.

Earlier on Tuesday, an Israeli airstrike killed one person and wounded 20 others in the nearby town of Jiyeh.

Both attacks hit areas that have not been a regular target of Israeli military operations and had not received prior evacuation warnings.  

"It felt like it was inside the house," Malika Al Hajj, an elderly woman living in Jiyeh, told The Associated Press. "I ran away — I don’t even know which neighbor brought me out, because everything was black. You couldn’t see anything."  

Once outside, Hajj said she discovered that the strike had hit the nearby building where her nephews live.  

"Men, women and children" live inside, she said. "I just want to be reassured. I saw some of them, but the others, they told me, were taken to the hospital."  

At the site of the strike, the building’s skeletal frame stands amid the rubble, its concrete shattered, windows blown out and metal twisted from the impact.  

Families were seen leaving the area, carrying what belongings they could gather.

Israeli attacks in Lebanon have killed at least 3,013 people and injured 13,553 others since Oct. 2023, the Lebanese government said on Tuesday.