Shafaq News- Baghdad

Iraqi authorities have released overdue payments to farmers, Finance Minister Falih al-Sari announced on Sunday, following weeks of protests over delayed compensation.

Al-Sari stated that the necessary procedures had been completed and that eligible farmers across the country would begin receiving the allocations.

In May, dozens of farmers from central and southern Iraq demonstrated in Baghdad over unpaid financial claims. Protesters gathered in Tahrir Square before marching toward the Green Zone, where security forces dispersed them with water cannons.

The cabinet had previously approved settlements for the 2024-2025 and 2025-2026 agricultural seasons and raised wheat procurement prices to 700,000 dinars (about $535) per ton for crops covered under the national agricultural plan.

Read more: Iraq's farmers fed the state. Now they're waiting to be paid.