US charges Iraqi, alleged pro-Iran armed group commander, with role in attack plots

• The United States has charged an Iraqi national accused of links to Iran-backed armed groups with planning attacks across North America and Europe.
• Prosecutors allege involvement in at least 18 attacks, citing retaliation for US and ‘Israel’ military actions.

The US Justice Department has arrested and charged an Iraqi national and commander of an Iran-backed Iraqi armed group with involvement in at least 18 alleged attacks and attempted attacks across the US, Canada and Europe.

A complaint unsealed on Friday in Manhattan federal court alleges that Mohammad Baqer Saad Dawood al-Saadi, 32, is a senior figure in Kataib Hezbollah, which is linked to Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).

FBI Director Kash Patel said on X that his agency had arrested and returned al-Saadi to the US, calling him a “high-value target responsible for mass global terrorism”.

Al-Saadi appeared on Friday at the Manhattan court where he was charged with six counts, including conspiracy to provide material support to “terrorist groups” Kataib Hezbollah and the IRGC.

He was also charged with conspiring and providing material support for “acts of terrorism” and conspiring to bomb a place of public use.

According to US court filings, al-Saadi and unidentified associates planned, coordinated and claimed responsibility for at least 18 attacks in Europe, and two in Canada.

Those attacks “appear to have been carried out both in retaliation for the United States and Israel’s recent military actions against Iran and to compel the United States and 'Israel' to halt those actions”, the criminal complaint states.

Al-Saadi’s defence lawyer, Andrew Dalack, stated that his client was taken into custody in Turkiye before being transferred to US custody.