Iraq refers vice presidents to court on corruption charges

The Iraqi Commission of Integrity has referred the country’s vice presidents, Nouri Al-Maliki, Iyad Allawi and Osama Najafi, and a number of other ministers to the judiciary on corruption charges.

“The regulatory authorities are accused of investigating small officials and excluding senior officials which is wrong. The evidence is the opening of major corruption files at national levels,” commission chairperson, Hussein Al-Yasiri, told reporters yesterday.

He added that the commission coordinates with the general prosecution and the Ministry of Justice to retrieve stolen funds however some countries do not cooperate with the Iraqi authorities.

Al-Yasiri said the commission has been able to recover nearly two trillion dinars (1.7 billion) during the current year as part of its work in the fight against corruption.

“The law of graft is still without a legal framework, and yet we were able to refer the three Vice Presidents as well as other ministers to the judiciary on the same charge,” he said.

Read: France’s Macron calls on Iraq to dismantle all militias

Earlier, Iraqi Prime Minister Haider Al-Abadi announced at a press conference that international experts are training Iraqi investigators to follow up on stolen funds.

“We will not refer anyone to the judiciary over corruption until the investigation if fully concluded,” Al-Abadi said.