New American indictment documents revealed exciting details about Muhammad Baqir al-Saadi, a prominent leader in the Iraqi “Hezbollah Brigades,” whom the United States accuses of being behind dozens of anti-Jewish attacks and operations in Europe and the United States, including plans to target churches, Jewish synagogues, and Western institutions.
According to reports in British newspapers, it was found that Al-Saadi, who is 32 years old and holds dual Iranian and Iraqi citizenship, revealed during investigations that he met Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei in Tehran a few days before he was killed at the beginning of the war in late February.
According to what was stated in the indictment, Al-Saadi told investigators that he met with Khamenei in Iran only about 3 days before the outbreak of the confrontation with Iran on February 28. The Sunday Times quoted Western intelligence sources as saying that this account appeared “credible.”
The US authorities accuse Al-Saadi of playing a central role in planning a series of attacks that were attributed to an organization known as “The People of the Right,” an organization that Washington describes as a front for the Iraqi “Kata’ib Hezbollah” militia supported by the Iranian Revolutionary Guard.
The indictment says that Al-Saadi was involved in at least 18 attacks in Britain and Europe, in addition to planning operations targeting Jews inside the United States.
The American authorities also accuse him of participating in planning attacks against Western targets, and directing arson attacks that targeted Jewish institutions in London via video chats using the FaceTime application, while photos attached to the case file showed what was said to document him conducting operations and attacks from inside a hideout in Iraq.
Al-Saadi was arrested in Turkey weeks ago after, according to the charges, he tried to recruit a person who was later found to be an undercover FBI agent, who was believed to be a member of a Mexican drug cartel.
After his arrest, he was transferred to New York, where he was charged with 8 terrorism-related charges.
His arrest came after a series of attacks targeted Jewish institutions in London, including burning a fleet of ambulances in the Golders Green area, in addition to an attack near a synagogue in the Belgian city of Liege, and targeting a branch of the “Bank of America” on Champs-Elysées Avenue in Paris.
The US prosecution says that the “People of the Right” organization is nothing but a front for the Iraqi “Hezbollah Brigades,” and that Al-Saadi held a prominent leadership position in it, and also worked to recruit criminals from various countries to carry out attacks on behalf of Tehran in exchange for sums of money in the thousands of pounds sterling, paid via cryptocurrencies.
According to judicial documents, after his arrest, Al-Saadi gave up his right to seek the assistance of a lawyer, and gave extensive statements about his relations with prominent Iranian leaders.
Among the most notable revelations was his saying that he was “like a son” to Qassem Soleimani, the commander of the “Quds Force” in the Iranian Revolutionary Guard, who was killed in an American raid near Baghdad airport in January 2020.
The indictment also indicates that he personally participated in FaceTime calls with the perpetrators of the attacks during their implementation, documented the operations, and contributed to the production and distribution of propaganda materials, in addition to discussions with members of the Iraqi “Hezbollah Brigades” about “psychological warfare” methods and the appropriate timing for carrying out some operations.
During a search of his phone, investigators found a copy of the charter of the “People of the Right” organization, believed to have been written last March, which stated: “As of today, we clearly declare that the United States, the Zionist-Israeli entity, and everyone who cooperates with them at any level will not be safe.”
The organization also claimed responsibility for a stabbing attack that targeted two Jews in the Golders Green area of London on April 29, but British anti-terrorism police doubted the validity of this claim, considering that it may be an attempt to benefit from the media momentum of the operation without a direct connection to it.
The documents also reveal that Al-Saadi asked one of his close associates to publish the scenes of the stabbing operation on the organization’s platforms, before later telling him: “If God grants us success tonight, there will be shooting in a restaurant.”
Investigations did not clarify the location of the operation that was being planned, nor was it ultimately carried out. But the very next day, the British government raised the terrorist threat level from “substantial” to “severe,” which means that the possibility of a terrorist attack has become very high.
This case highlights a complex network of relationships and accusations linking armed groups loyal to Iran with cross-border security operations, at a time when Washington continues to pursue figures it considers part of the external structure of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard.
