Iraq lifts order to seize Kuwaiti citizens’ properties

The Iraqi cabinet on Tuesday decided to lift an order to seize properties owned by Kuwaiti citizens in Iraq imposed by the former regime more than three decades ago.

The former Iraqi regime issued a decree to seize the property of GCC nationals, including Kuwaitis in Iraq during Iraq’s invasion of Kuwait in the 1990s.

A statement issued by Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi office said: “The cabinet decided in its regular meeting on Tuesday to lift an order to seize real estate properties owned by Kuwaiti citizens that was imposed by the dissolved office of the presidency in 1995.”

Commenting on the cabinet’s decision, Sadiq Mahdi, a member of the Iraqi Parliament’s Legal Committee, described the decision as an important step to end years of deadlock between Iraq and Kuwait over this issue.

Mahdi told Anadolu news agency that the majority of the Kuwaiti citizens’ properties are located in the southern province of Basra, while some are located in the provinces of Karbala and Najaf.

Mahdi pointed out that “the decision will have positive repercussions on the relationship between Kuwait and Iraq”.

Iraq and Kuwait resumed their diplomatic relations after the US invasion of Iraq in 2003 and the overthrow of Saddam Hussein’s regime.