Iran’s Judiciary Chief: Trump No.1 Culprit in Assassination of General Soleimani

TEHRAN (Defapress) - Iranian Judiciary Chief Seyed Ebrahim Rayeesi on Wednesday described outgoing US President Donald Trump as the number one culprit in the terrorist attack on Iran's leading anti-terror Commander Lieutenant General Qassem Soleimani, stressing that the US president may not escape punishment on the pretext of political immunity.

News ID: 82831

Date: 31 December 2020 - 15:23

“Trump is the number one criminal in the assassination of martyr Soleiamni, who has admitted to the crime before the world people and he may by no means be seen immune to punishment for this act,” Rayeesi said.

He referred to the US claims of immunity because of its legal status, and underlined that the US officials could no way escape investigation into this crime and "they should account for their crime of assassinating martyr Soleimani".

Rayeesi said that necessary mechanisms have been established to follow up the case through legal and criminal courts and channels.

He stressed the need for a serious prosecution of the perpetrators of the terror attack, noting that there are enough documents to pursue the case and demand punishment for the masterminds and perpetrators of this heinous crime.

Secretary of Iran's High Council for Human Rights Ali Baqeri Kani announced on Monday that the country has identified and is prosecuting 48 individuals for masterminding and conducting the last year terror attack on General Soleimani.

“48 suspects have been identified in connection with the case of martyred General Qassem Soleimani and necessary measures have been adopted to prosecute them,” Baqeri said.

He added that Iran has asked for information and documents with regard to this attack from all the countries which have been one way or another connected to this terrorist crime.

“The latest country was Germany; and we have received reports and information that the Americans’ base (Ramstein) in Germany has been involved in exchange of information between the US drones used in the assassination of martyr Soleimani,” Baqeri said.

Lieutenant General Soleimani was assassinated in a US drone strike on Baghdad International Airport in Iraq on January 3, 2020.

The airstrike also martyred 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 military men were martyred by the missiles fired by the US drone at Baghdad International Airport.

On January 8 and after the funeral ceremony of General Soleimani, 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.

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.

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

Meantime, Iran announced in late June that it had issued arrest warrants for 36 officials of the US and other countries who have been involved in the assassination of the martyred General Soleimani.

"36 individuals who have been involved or ordered the assassination of Hajj Qassem, including the political and military officials of the US and other governments, have been identified and arrest warrants have been issued for them by the judiciary officials and red alerts have also been issued for them via the Interpol," Alqasi Mehr said at the time.

He said that the prosecuted individuals are accused of murder and terrorist action, adding that US President Donald Trump stands at the top of the list and will be prosecuted as soon as he stands down presidency after his term ends.