DUBAI, UAE - The political movement of influential Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr, was planning to file a legal complaint against the Iraqi government under the law which criminalizes normalization of ties with Israel, accusing Baghdad of being complicit in Israel’s alleged breach of Iraqi airspace for the attack on Iran, according to a senior official from the movement. However, the government preempted this move by submitting a formal protest to the United Nations on Monday.

A senior official within the National Shiite Movement - previously the Sadrist Movement - speaking on condition of anonymity, told The New Region that “Sadr’s statement regarding Israel’s violation of Iraqi airspace, combined with his threat to include the government under the Anti-Normalization [with Israel] Law, is what pushed the government to acknowledge the violation and file an official complaint with the UN.”

In a post on X, Sadr said that Israel’s use of Iraqi airspace for a “terrorist war” on Iran was unacceptable and demanded a swift diplomatic response from Baghdad.

Failure to respond, he warned, could result in the government being penalized under the Law of Criminalizing the Normalization with the Zionist Entity, which prohibits Iraqi officials from engaging with Israel in any capacity.

The official said that the Sadrists were planning on filing the complaint due to the government’s silence “which is considered direct or indirect participation,” which led Baghdad into submitting the protests note following Sadr’s threats.

The Iraqi government had refrained from commenting on the reports until Monday morning when it announced that it had lodged a formal complaint to UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres and the UN Security Council, condemning the reported Israeli breach and labeled it a “flagrant violation” of Iraqi sovereignty.

The statement did not directly accuse the US of involvement in the operation and use of Iraqi airspace, but did note that Prime Minister Mohammed Shia’ al-Sudani has directed the foreign ministry to “communicate with the American side regarding this violation, in accordance with the terms of the bilateral Strategic Framework Agreement, and the US’ commitment to the security and sovereignty of Iraq.”

The Israeli military on Saturday targeted several military sites across three Iranian provinces in response to Iran’s ballistic missile attack on Israeli territory earlier this month. Tehran claimed that the damage from the attack was limited, but did announce that four of its soldiers were killed in the operation.

The Iranian army accused the US military in Iraq of allowing Israel to use the country’s airspace in the attack. Washington has stated that it did not participate in the operation.

Several Iraqi Shiite leaders and armed groups have already put the blame on the US, vowing retaliation, and renewing calls for the withdrawal of American troops from the country.