Two men sentenced to death for the 2020 kidnapping of an activist in southern Iraq

March 22 (EUROPA PRESS) –

An Iraqi court has sentenced two people to death this Wednesday for their role in the kidnapping in September 2020 of the activist Sayad al Iraki, one of the visible faces of the anti-government mobilizations that broke out in the country in October 2019 and who continues missing.

The ruling has been handed down by a court in the province of Di Car against two “criminals” involved in the kidnapping of the activist in Nasiriya, as indicated by the Supreme Council of the Iraqi Magistracy in a statement, in which it has stressed that both have been sentenced in absentia because they are on the run.

The activist was kidnapped when he was driving in a vehicle through the city, located in the south of the country. Several unidentified people forced him to stop and took him by force, according to the authorities, an event that took place in the context of the repression of protests against the serious crisis in the Asian country.

Iraq held early parliamentary elections in October 2021 as part of the commitments of the then Prime Minister, Mostafa al-Kazemi, to meet the demands of the protesters, whose protests forced the resignation of the government and the approval of new electoral legislation. .

However, the political disputes after the elections caused the talks to form a new government to last for nearly a year. The new Executive has promised to investigate the abuses committed during the repression of the demonstrations, which resulted in hundreds of deaths, and has ensured that those responsible for violations will be held accountable.