SULAIMANI (ESTA) — The Iraqi commission for integrity said it had issued 55 arrest warrants and summonses against lawmakers and former senior officials in August.
In a statement, the commission said the defendants included seven lawmakers, two former ministers, three former deputy ministers, nine former governors, nine current general directors, 11 former directors, and 14 members of provincial councils.
They were accused of involvement in corruption and of misusing power for personal interests, the commission said on Tuesday.
The commission has issued 858 arrest warrants and 3,208 summonses against officials in the first six months of 2021.
Graft plagues all sectors of society in Iraq. It holds 21st place in the rankings of the most corrupt countries in the world, according to NGO Transparency International.
Corruption in Iraq has deprived the public purse of some $450 billion of revenues since 2003, according to a 2019 parliamentary report.
A popular protest movement was born in October 2019, with demonstrations in many cities against Iraq’s culture of bribery and corruption.
