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Iraq summons 9 senior officials in anti-corruption crackdown

June 8, 2021 at 9:10 am

Iraq flag on May 25, 2021 in Baghdad, Iraq [Taha Hussein Ali/Getty Images]

The Iraqi Commission of Integrity said yesterday it had issued nine arrest warrants against senior officials on charges of administrative and financial corruption.

The commission said in a statement that “investigations into a number of important files and cases led to the issuance of nine arrest warrants and summons orders against officials in various governorates of Iraq, including the former head of the Kirkuk Provincial Council, a former parliamentarian, an adviser to the Presidency of the Republic, the former president of the Northern Technical University and the director of the distribution department in the Oil Products Distribution Company in Nineveh Governorate.”

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According to the statement, the summons includes the former general manager of the Rashid Bank branch in Dhi Qar governorate and the former governor of Babil.

The commission explained that the charges against the officials are related to the misuse of public money.

The anti-corruption civil society organisation Transparency International ranks Iraq 20th from bottom globally in its Corruption Perceptions Index.