Kurdistan
From left: Iraqi activist Fatima al-Bahadly, her son Ali Karim, and a suspect arrested in the murder of Karim. Photos: handout/Kurdistan Region counter-terror directorate
ERBIL, Kurdistan Region — Kurdish security forces on Tuesday arrested a man accused in the killing of Ali Karim, the son of an Iraqi activist, in Basra this week.
Iraq’s security agencies requested Kurdish assistance locating the suspect in the murder, the Kurdistan Region’s Counter-Terrorism Department said and an arrest was made after an investigation.
The suspect has confessed to killing Karim and will be handed over to Iraq’s security, the counter-terror statement added.
The body of 26-year-old Karim was found on Sunday west of Basra city 24 hours after he was kidnapped by unidentified assailants, relatives told Iraqi media before. He had been shot in the head and chest.
“The arrest came after the formation of a specialized team and intensive intelligence efforts from the scene of the accident until his arrest in cooperation with the security services in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq” and Basra’s governor, Iraq’s Security Media Cell said in a statement.
Karim is the son of Fatima al-Bahadly, a Basra activist who founded the al-Firdaws Society, which focuses women’s education and campaigns against the recruitment of young people into armed groups. She has been repeatedly threatened over the years because of her work.
At least 34 activists have been killed in targeted assassinations since anti-government protests began in October 2019. Hardline units of the Iran-backed Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF or Hashd al-Shaabi) are widely accused of the murders. Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi has repeatedly pledged to hold the assassins accountable, but just a handful of arrests have been made.
A number of activists in Basra were assassinated last year, including Ahmed Abd al-Samad, a 37-year-old correspondent for Dijla channel, and his cameraman, Safaa Ghali, 26. Both were killed by gunmen on January 10, 2020.
Women have been among those targeted. Sports coach and activist Reham Yacoub was shot dead in Basra on August 19, 2020. Lodya Remon Albarti, who led women’s marches in Basra, survived a shooting on August 17.
Iraqi authorities earlier this year arrested four people in Basra on suspicion of being behind the assassinations, the first known arrests in these cases.
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