BAGHDAD: An Iraqi man has been sentenced to life in prison for human trafficking after he recruited Iraqis to fight for Russia against Ukraine, court officials said Monday.

The Najaf Criminal Court said in a statement that the convicted man had “formed groups and sent them to fight in foreign countries in exchange for financial compensation” and that the verdict was issued based on Iraq's anti-human trafficking law.

An Iraqi judicial official and a senior security official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorised to comment, said the man, whom they identified as Risan Falah Kamel, was convicted of recruiting fighters and sending them to fight on the Russian side.

Foreign fighters have joined both sides in the war that began with Russia's invasion in 2022.

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