Man dies in custody of Iraqi National Security Service
kurdsatnews
Dec 15, 2022
Kirkuk, Kurdistan region.
Speaking to KurdSat English, Sabah's brother Amjad Sabah said, "around ten armed personnel raided his home and abducted him, later telling us to take back his dead body, even though he was perfectly well before; what they have done is unacceptable.
According to Sabah's family, in 2021, on a Facebook post, Sabah had said in the comment section, the involvement of a Kirkuk top official in a petroleum-related corruption scandal, prompting the official to sue Sabah. But his arrest warrant was issued later, and was taken in for questioning today.
Sabah had diabetes and probably died as he panicked when he saw a special force raiding his home in the middle of the night, per his family. "He probably had a stroke and died of it," a family member said, but according to the authorities, it would be weeks before his autopsy report is finalized.
Following the incident that grabbed national media attention, Iraqi Justice Minister Khalid Shuani called on INSS Chief Hamid Shatri to investigate the death of the Kirkuk employee.
Following the Justice Minister's comments, KurdSat's Aso Ahmed said that the convoy that raided the Kurdish man's home is now under arrest, which included two National Security Agency vehicles, and two military vehicles with the Kirkuk Joint Operations.
The National Security Service promised to conduct a thorough investigation into the death of Abdulqadir Sabah and "punish" all who were negligent in the strictest manner.