38 arrest warrants, summonses issued against Iraqi officials in November
Part of the Iraqi capital, Baghdad. Photo: Shutterstock
Baghdad (IraqiNews.com) – Iraq’s Commission of Integrity (COI) announced on Tuesday that 38 arrest warrants and summonses have been issued against senior Iraqi officials during November.
The COI’s investigation department mentioned in a statement that the orders given by the Iraqi judiciary were in relation to cases the COI was looking into in Baghdad and other governorates, the Iraqi News Agency (INA) reported.
The statement illustrated that the judiciary’s orders include eight arrest warrants and 30 summonses against 34 senior officials.
The officials included three former ministers, three former governors, 18 former directors, and 10 directors currently in office, in addition to a former governorate council member.
The representative of the European Union (EU) confirmed last Saturday that the Iraqi government has made significant progress in combating corruption.
The EU representative, during his meeting with the head of the COI, Haider Hanoun, commended the Iraqi government’s approach to combating corruption, indicating that European companies have been advised to operate in Iraq as regulations are encouraging, security is improving, and the judiciary is professional, according to a statement cited by INA.
The Iraqi Prime Minister, Mohammed Shia Al-Sudani, has vowed to crack down on corruption since his appointment in October 2022.
The Special Representative of the Secretary-General for the United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq (UNAMI), Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert, expressed last December her confidence in the ability of Al-Sudani to combat corruption and provide services.