of Mohammad Baqer Saad Dawood al-Saadi, left, with Qasem Soleimani, was featured on al-Saadi’s Snapchat account, according to a federal criminal complaint. (FBI)
The United States Justice Department announced on May 15 the arrest of an Iraqi national for terrorism on behalf of Iran.
Prosecutors said that Mohammad Baqer Saad Dawood al-Saadi, a member of the Kata’ib Hizballah and an operative of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, plotted close to 20 attacks in the U.S., Europe and Canada.
He allegedly attacks on “U.S. and Israeli interests and to kill Americans and Jews in the U.S. and abroad,” Acting U.S. Attorney General Todd Blanche said in a statement.
Attacks linked to al-Saadi include arson against a synagogue in North Macedonia and the stabbing of two Jewish men last month in London.
According to the Justice Department, al-Saadi allegedly attempted “terror attacks” against Jewish institutions in New York this month and next month.
In communication with an undercover officer, he shared photos of a prominent Jewish synagogue in New York, and two Jewish institutions in California and Arizona, directing the officer to attack the targets.
Al-Saadi was hit with several charges including conspiracy to provide material support to a foreign terrorist organization, conspiracy to provide material support for acts of terrorism, and conspiracy to bomb a place of public use. He appeared in a federal court in New York City.
The Justice Department has not said how or when al-Saadi was arrested. However, flight records show a Justice Department aircraft often used for global extraditions flew to Turkey this week, returning via Morocco and landing in the New York City area on May 14.
“My understanding at this point is that he was arrested in Turkey by Turkish authorities, likely at the behest of US authorities, and was handed over to US authorities without an opportunity to contest the legality of his detention or transport to the United States,” said al-Saadi’s attorney Andrew J. Dalack, according to CNN.
Kata’ib Hizballah has long been designated as a terrorist group by the U.S., and after the start of the war on Iran additional sanctions were imposed on senior commanders of the group.
Amid the war, the group, as a part of the Islamic Resistance in Iraq coalition, carried out missile and drone attacks against facilities hosting or supporting the U.S. military in the country and abroad. It also abducted then released American Journalist Shelly Kittleson.
The arrest of al-Saadi shows that the U.S. is determined to keep escalating against Iran and its allies in the region. Kata’ib Hizballah will not likely respond in a direct manner, but the group could attempt to abduct Americans in an attempt to free its commander.
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