Suspect arrested over stabbing death after football match dispute in Baghdad

BAGHDAD, Iraq — A man has been arrested in connection with a stabbing death that followed a dispute over a football match in Baghdad's Rusafa district, local police said. According to a statement from the Baghdad Rusafa Police Command, the suspect stabbed his friend with a bladed weapon during an argument stemming from the match. The victim was critically wounded and died two days later in hospital. The suspect was initially detained under Article 413 of the Iraqi Penal Code. After the victim's death, the investigating judge reclassified the case as intentional murder under Article 405 and transferred the file to the Baghdad Rusafa Children's Police Center, citing the suspect's status as a minor. Judicial proceedings against the suspect are ongoing, the command said.