Saadoun Sabri al-Qaisi, locating a mass grave in Iraq`s Anbar province (File Photo by al-Mada)

Iraq has executed a former senior security official from Saddam Hussein`s regime for his role in the 1980 execution of prominent Shia cleric Mohammed Baqir al-Sadr, the government announced on Monday.

The National Security Service said Saadoun Sabri al-Qaisi was found guilty of "grave crimes against humanity," including the killings of al-Sadr, members of the al-Hakim family, and other civilians.

The report did not specify when al-Qaisi, a former major general under Saddam who was arrested last year, was executed.

Al-Sadr, one of the most prominent critics of Saddam`s Baathist regime, was arrested in 1980 along with his sister, Bint al-Huda, a revered scholar and activist, after they openly condemned the regime`s repression of Shia activists.

During their detention, they were tortured before being executed by a firing squad on April 8, 1980.

The execution sparked widespread outrage at the time and remains a symbol of repression under Saddam`s rule.

Since the 2003 fall of Saddam, Iraqi authorities have prosecuted former officials accused of "crimes against humanity" and abuses against political and religious opponents.