An Iraqi court has sentenced an ISIS leader to death for being "primarily responsible" for a Suicide Bombing attack in January 2021 that killed 32 people, according to an official statement released Monday.
On January 21, 2021, two suicide bombers blew themselves up in central Baghdad with an ISIS-claimed attack that also injured more than 110 people, the highest number of deaths inside the capital since the group was declared a "victory" in 2017.
"The Central Criminal Court at the Head of Baghdad's Appeals Court sentenced the criminal (S) to death for the southern governor of the terrorist organization ISIS, who was responsible for the bombing of the Bales market in the Eastern Bab area early last year," the judicial media said in a statement.
After the investigations, the person admitted to being affiliated with ISIS since 2012, she said.
The statement said he also admitted to "planning a security breach in the capital Baghdad, equipped with two suicide bombers in the bombing of the Eastern Bab area (Al-Balat market)."
Accordingly, he was sentenced to death in accordance with anti-terrorism law No. 13 of 2005. This law punishes anyone convicted of "terrorism", a charge that may include belonging to an extremist group even if the accused is not convicted of any specific acts.
In late April, four terrorism convicts were sentenced to death for their responsibility for a car bomb in Ramadi, Anbar province.
Since Iraq declared victory over ISIS, Iraqi courts have handed down hundreds of death sentences against isis members.
While Iraqi forces have succeeded in eliminating the group after bloody battles, cells from it are still active in some areas far from cities, occasionally targeting military positions.
A January 2022 UN Security Council report noted that the group "has maintained its ability to launch attacks at a steady rate in Iraq, including carrying out raids, ambushes and roadside bombs, with a significant concentration of activity in Kirkuk, Diyala and Salahuddin provinces".
The last bloody explosion in the capital occurred in July 2021, on the eve of Eid al-Adha, killing dozens of people, mostof them children.