US Embassy Defenses Shoot Down Two Drones in Baghdad
US embassy defenses shoot down two drones in Baghdad, while Iraqi courts sentence seven French nationals for alleged ISIS affiliation.
Translated by Qiyas from الراي — Original source
It was reported that the first drone was shot down near the Green Zone, while the second was shot down near Abd al-Muhsin Square in Baghdad.
Iraqi security media had previously announced the downing of a drone in the vicinity of the Green Zone, without providing details on who launched it or its target.
It was clarified that the sound heard in Baghdad resulted from the engagement of an unidentified drone in the vicinity of the Green Zone, with officials confirming that “the drone was dealt with,” according to the official Waa News Agency.
A security source also stated that the drone shot down near the Green Zone “did not achieve its objective,” as reported by local media outlets.
Judicially, the Iraqi judiciary sentenced seven French nationals convicted of belonging to the “Daesh” (ISIS) organization to prison terms, marking the first verdicts issued against a group of 47 French citizens who were transferred from Syria to Iraq last year and whose trials began last month.
The Karrah Assize Court sentenced Khader Al-Sabawi, Adel Bouaoun, Anis Abdul Rahman, Ziad Ahmad, Benjamin Vanan, and Mehdi Ismail to life imprisonment, equivalent to up to 20 years, “for the crime of belonging to the Daesh terrorist organization and participating with organization members in spreading terror,” according to a France Press correspondent.
The court also sentenced Hamza Ben Abid (24) to 15 years in prison. He was taken by his mother to the organization in Syria more than a decade ago.
The group of 47 French citizens includes Adrien Gual, who claimed responsibility for the Nice attack in southern France on behalf of the organization, which killed 86 people on July 14, 2016. He has not yet appeared in court.
In 2019, death sentences were issued in Iraq against 11 French citizens, which were later commuted to life imprisonment on appeal.
Iraqi prisons, already overcrowded with suspects linked to “Daesh,” are now holding additional detainees transferred from Syria earlier this year. Their number exceeds 5,700 individuals from approximately sixty nationalities suspected of belonging to the organization, after spending years in camps in Syria run by Kurdish forces.
Last month, the Iraqi judiciary announced the completion of their interrogations and “the transition to the next judicial stage, consisting of referring them to the trial court.”
