Iraqi government rebukes moving U.S embassy to Jerusalem

Iraq’s Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi rejected on Tuesday plans by U.S. President Donald Trump to transfer his country’s embassy to Jerusalem, also dismissing a Human Rights Watch report on terrorism trials in his country.

In his weekly press conference, Abadi said “the cabinet rejects the transfer of the American embassy to Jerusalem and warns against consequences of that matter on regional and world stability.

According to Abadi, the U.S. decision represents “an abuse of the rights of Palestinians, the Arab and Islamic Worlds and the rest of faiths”.

U.S. officials were recently quoted saying that Trump would deliver a speech on Wednesday recognizing Jerusalem, disputed by the Palestinians and Israelis as their capital, as the capital of Israel, before relocating his country’s embassy from Tel Aviv to there as confirmation of that recognition.

Trump’s plans drew objection from the European Union and the Arab League, which prompted him to delay the declaration.

Also in his press conference, Abadi dismissed a report by Human Rights Watch on unfounded terrorism prosecutions in Iraq as “untrue”.

“finds serious legal shortcomings that undermine efforts to bring (Islamic State) fighters, members, and affiliates to justice,” the organization said in a 80-page report targeting the Baghdad and Erbil governments.

“Thousands of trials of Islamic State suspects without a strategy to prioritise the worst abuses under Iraqi and international law…The broad prosecution under terrorism law of all those affiliated with ISIS (IS) in any way, no matter how minimal, could impede future community reconciliation and reintegration, and clog up Iraqi courts and prisons for decades,” HRW said.

On the military side, One Iraqi was killed and another one was wounded Thursday when armed gunmen shot at them in northern Baghdad, according to security source.

Alghad Press quoted a security source saying that unknown gunmen shot dead a foodstuff store owner and wounded two others in Husseiniya, north of the capital.

The motivation behind the shooting was not known yet.

Baghdad has seen almost daily bombings and gun attacks since Islamic State militants emerged in 2014 to proclaim an Islamic “caliphate”.

A total of 117 Iraqi civilians were killed and another 264 injured in acts of terrorism, violence and armed conflict in Iraq in November, according to casualty figures recorded by the United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq (UNAMI).

The number of civilians killed in November (not including police) was 114, while the number of injured (not including police) was 264, UNAMI said in its monthly release on Sunday.

Of those figures, Baghdad was the worst affected Governorate, with 201 civilian casualties (51 killed, 150 injured). Salahaddin Governorate followed, with 24 killed and 60 injured, and Kirkuk had 12 killed and 28 injured.

UNAMI has not been able to obtain the civilian casualty figures from the Anbar Health Department for the month of November.

In the same context, Iraqi security forces on Thursday discovered underground tunnels and hundreds of rockets belonging to Islamic State militants as they combed areas recaptured from the militant group in Nineveh and Anbar.

Interior Ministry spokesman, Saad Maan, said in a press conference that troops found 500 rockets in the town of Tal Afar, west of Nineveh. He said most of those were prepared for drones.

Iraqi troops seized Tal Afar back from Islamic State militants in August.

Meanwhile, the army’s  Anbar Operations Command said it uncovered three underground tunnels and a pickup truck belonging to the group south of the city of Haditha, Anbar.

The command’s chief, Mahmoud al-Falahi, was quoted by Alsumaria News saying that army and police forces also detonated 15 explosive devices in the city of Ramadi.

Iraqi troops retook the town of Rawa, west of Anbar, last month, marking the end of Islamic State’s territorial influence in Iraq.

Iraqi troops are currently working to purge Anbar’s joint desert with Nineveh and Salahuddin from the last militant vestiges.

Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi declared military victory over IS in mid November, but said overall victory would be announced after militants are eliminated from desert areas.