Has Iraqi government's anti-corruption campaign lost momentum?

In February, Iraq ranked 140th globally out of 180 countries listed in the Global Transparency Index, while it ranked eighth among the most corrupt Arab states.

06.08.2026

By Mohammed Al-Bassem

Baghdad

Source:https://www.newarab.com/news/has-iraqs-anti-corruption-campaign-lost-momentum

Iraq's "Dawn Assault" operation to pursue and arrest those accused of corruption and seize money stolen from the state, launched by the government of Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi, is facing complications.

A consultant close to the Iraqi prime minister told The New Arab on July 29 that "the operation has not stopped but is continuing. But, the pace of implementing arrest warrants against those involved has slowed due to the issue of restricting weapons held by factions, in addition to regional security tensions and the strikes carried out by Saudi Arabia and the United States against some Popular Mobilisation Forces (PMF) headquarters".

The "Dawn Assault" operation is the largest government and judicial campaign launched in Iraq on 28 June, led by al-Zaidi and Supreme Judicial Council chief Faiq Zidan, to pursue senior corrupt figures, recover stolen public funds and dismantle embezzlement and extortion networks.

The operation has made significant progress, with seized funds and assets exceeding 141 billion Iraqi dinars (about $108 million), in addition to hundreds of kilograms of gold, properties and hidden commercial assets found inside homes, walls and underground pits.

The arrests have scooped up 50 people, including senior officials, Ministry of Oil officials and MPs whose immunity was lifted.

The campaign began with the arrest of Deputy Oil Minister for Refining Affairs Adnan al-Jumaili on 30 May. He confessed to the involvement of officials who participated with him in corrupt deals and contracts and received large sums of money amounting to millions of dollars.

The campaign received widespread public support, with activists organising demonstrations to support efforts to combat corruption that has plagued the Iraqi state since the US occupation of the country in 2003.

According to the Iraqi consultant, "It is a legal campaign based on confessions and evidence. Those accused of corruption and those arrested remain under investigation and interrogation, and many of them have confessed to the names of prominent officials and leading figures. Consequently, discussing complex details that could disrupt political work cannot be opened at the current time."

"The situation in Iraq, specifically after the recent strikes that targeted PMF headquarters by Saudi Arabia and the United States, has complicated the internal scene and given some armed factions justification to announce their adherence to their weapons. Therefore, Iraqi government files affect one another despite not being linked," he added.

In this context, Iraqi MP Yasser al-Husseini said that "stopping the operation or reducing its pace will cause problems related to trust between the people who support holding corrupt individuals accountable and the government that launched the Dawn Assault campaign".

He expected the campaign to continue "until all those accused and corrupt individuals are placed in prisons and receive their punishment according to Iraqi law".

The Iraqi MP further told TNA that the Iraqi government has opened "a battle to end corruption in government institutions and stop the waste of public money. It has pledged to bring Iraq to a stage of recovery, and there is a need to protect and support everyone who reports corruption cases and any information related to cases involving the theft of public funds."

Widespread political support

Iraqi political researcher Majashaa al-Tamimi said to TNA that "there is broad support from political forces for the 'Dawn Assault' campaign. The level of support has even reached some parties calling for public trials of those involved in corruption."

"This means the campaign will not stop, but the political parties seeking to obstruct the campaign's course are most likely afraid of accountability because they may have integrity-related issues," he said.

He explained that "fighting corruption requires domestic and international support, and the influence of parties in pressuring the Iraqi prime minister may succeed at some stage, but the general situation, particularly internationally, does not allow corruption to continue."

Al-Tamimi considered that Al-Zaidi's steps in combating corruption "were good so far, and for the campaign to achieve further success, it must continue because Iraqi sectors in most state institutions, such as services, health and education, have been affected by corruption."

"Most corruption cases are linked to contracts that are usually granted to political fronts and then transferred to companies," he added.

Unofficial estimates indicate that the total amount of money looted through corruption operations in Iraq since 2003 is close to $1 trillion.

In February, Iraq ranked 140th globally out of 180 countries listed in the Global Transparency Index, while it ranked eighth among the most corrupt Arab countries in 2024.

Transparency International said in a recent report that "Iraq ranked 140th globally with 26 points, three points higher than in 2023, and eighth among the most corrupt Arab countries, with Somalia, Syria, Sudan, Yemen, Libya, Eritrea and Lebanon ranking ahead of it as the most corrupt Arab countries."

The electricity sector is considered the country's most prominent corruption file, with more than $60 billion wasted between 2003 and 2023.

The money disappeared without any tangible improvement in electricity services, as the power crisis remains one of the biggest challenges facing the country.

Meanwhile, the "theft of the century" case, a term used to describe the embezzlement of about $2.5 billion (around 3.7 trillion Iraqi dinars) from tax deposits belonging to the General Tax Authority at the Ministry of Finance between 2021 and 2022, through 247 cheques issued to five companies affiliated with businessman Noor Zuhair, who has good relations with some well-known political parties in the country, is one of the most prominent corruption cases to have emerged.

However, the case was buried after the general amnesty law was passed, and no one has been held to account.

Article translated from Arabic by Afrah Almatwari. To read the original, click here.