Shafaq News – Baghdad

In its upcoming session, Iraq’s parliament will vote on both the “Red Card” and “Industrial Investment” Laws, while the Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF) Authority Law will be postponed, an Iraqi lawmaker confirmed to Shafaq News on Wednesday.

Independent MP Hussein al-Saabri highlighted that the chamber will also review “a number of economic and service-related legislations that directly impact citizens’ lives,” alongside the second reading of other bills that require extensive discussions before approval.

Earlier, First Deputy Speaker Mohsen Al-Mandalawi confirmed that parliamentary committees had endorsed a draft law to compensate holders of Red Cards, including the annulment of decisions issued by the dissolved Revolutionary Command Council.

The term “Red Card holders” refers to citizens who endured punishments and were stripped of civil rights under the Baath government, specifically between 1994 and 2000. They faced sanctions due to opposition to the previous regime or refusal to participate in certain military practices.

Meanwhile, Hussein Al-Battat of the State of Law bloc confirmed that the PMF Authority Law will not be put to a vote, citing “foreign pressures influencing the government to block the Law.”

Urging the parliament to “pressure the government to resend the law for a vote before the end of the legislative term,” he stressed that both internal and external pressures should be resisted to ensure the legislation is addressed.

The draft PMF law aims to regulate the force by standardizing ranks, defining its relationship with the Defense and Finance Ministries, securing funding mechanisms, and requiring military experience for senior leadership positions. Most Shiite blocs back the proposal, while the majority of Kurdish and Sunni factions oppose key elements.

Formed in 2014 following a religious edict from Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani after the fall of Mosul to ISIS, the PMF brought together thousands of volunteers under a government-sanctioned framework.