Shafaq News-Baghdad
A court in Baghdadhas ratified the confessions of two defendants accused of belonging to theAhmadi Religion of Peace and Light (AROPL), locally known as the Al-Yamani Movement, Iraq'sSupreme Judicial Council said on Sunday.
Thedefendants admitted knowing that a girl had been hidden to facilitate hermarriage outside Iraq and her entry into the group, and using a Telegramchannel to arrange marriages among members and encourage young people toemigrate, according to the council.
Authorities areworking to execute arrest warrants against other suspects.
The movementis led by Ahmed al-Hasan al-Yamani,a Shiite religious figure who claims to be the messianic “Al-Yamani.” InTwelver Shiite Islam, the dominant branch of Islam in Iraq, Al-Yamani isexpected to emerge before the reappearance of the Mahdi, the Twelfth Imam.
In April2025, an Iraqi security source told Shafaq News that authorities had detained a"high-value target" believed to be the movement's chief strategist inNajaf province. Iraqi security agencies have repeatedly described such groupsas "deviant" movements that threaten social stability, while Iraq'sleading Shiite cleric, Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, has rejected claims byindividuals asserting they represent or are the awaited Mahdi, warning thatsuch assertions mislead the public and exploit periods of instability.
