Iraqi court acquits Abbas Al-Yaqoubi of charges over attacks on US interests

An Iraqi court has dismissed all charges against Abbas Al-Yaqoubi, Director of Intelligence for the Baghdad Belt Operations in the Popular Mobilization Forces, fully acquitting him and cancelling all legal cases and proceedings against him.

Al-Yaqoubi previously served as the intelligence chief of Harakat al-Nujaba and as Director of Intelligence for the Baghdad Belt Operations Command. He was arrested on accusations of carrying out attacks targeting US presence in Iraq.

According to Asharq, an Iraqi security source stated that a special force arrested Abbas Hussein Matar (known as Abbas Al-Yaqoubi) during a raid on his home in the Fadhiliya area south of Nasiriyah in Dhi Qar province, in connection with allegations of attacks against US interests in Iraq.

The source, cited by Asharq, clarified that Al-Yaqoubi's case was not merely about his affiliation with Harakat al-Nujaba or his work within the Popular Mobilization Forces, but involved specific accusations related to attacks on US forces in Iraq.

Al-Yaqoubi's arrest comes as Prime Minister Ali Al-Zaidi's government faces the sensitive issue of restricting weapons to state control. In recent months, Harakat al-Nujaba has clarified its stance, rejecting the inclusion of what it calls "resistance" weapons in the government's program targeting unauthorized arms.

In May, Nazem Al-Saeedi, head of Harakat al-Nujaba's executive council, stated that the government's weapons control initiative should not apply to resistance arms, arguing that "unauthorized weapons" refers only to arms outside the law and those causing chaos.