IRAQ ISSUES ARREST WARRANT VS TRUMP FOR SLAY OF PARAMILITARY CHIEF

A judge in Baghdad's investigative court has issued an arrest warrant for outgoing US President Donald Trump, over the killing of an Iraqi paramilitary leader during the assassination of Iranian General Qasem Soleimani last year, Mohammed Tawfeeq and Aqeel Najim reported for CNN.

Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis -- the Iraqi deputy head of the Iran-backed Iraqi Popular Mobilization Forces -- was killed along with Soleimani in a US airstrike just over a year ago, on January 3, 2020.

"After the completion of the preliminary investigation procedures, the judge decided to issue an arrest warrant for the outgoing President of the United States of America, Donald Trump," read a statement released by the Supreme Judicial Council of Iraq on Thursday.

"The investigation procedures will continue to find out the other participants in the implementation of this crime, whether they are Iraqis or foreigners," the statement added.

The Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF) is a Shia paramilitary force made up of former militias with close ties to Iran. It was recognized under a 2016 Iraqi law as an independent military force that answers directly to the prime minister. Iran also has an arrest warrant out for Trump in relation to Soleimani's death, the semi-official Fars news agency reported.

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