Shafaq News- Baghdad

Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi has dismissed nine security and government officials and ordered legal action against those involved in oil smuggling in Jurf al-Sakhr, north of Babil province, Sabah al-Numan, spokesperson for the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces, said on Saturday.

Al-Zaidi chaired an emergency security meeting to review the findings of a committee investigating the smuggling operations. The committee confirmed the allegations, uncovered oil refineries, and identified manipulation in the sector, corroborating findings previously reported by the Federal Intelligence and Investigations Agency.

The dismissals covered nine positions: the Babil police chief; the North Babil police director; the Interior Ministry's intelligence and counterterrorism director in Babil; the provincial director of the National Security Service; the Defense Ministry's intelligence and security director in Babil; the Babil intelligence director; the Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF) commander in the province; the commander of the Interior Ministry's Sixth Energy Police Brigade; and the director of the Oil Pipelines Company at the Oil Ministry.

Al-Zaidi warned security and intelligence officials that they would be held accountable for any oil smuggling within their jurisdictions. He also urged operations commanders, provincial police chiefs, and heads of security agencies to strengthen oversight, prevent smuggling, and hold negligent officials accountable.

The investigation followed a confidential intelligence report obtained by Shafaq News, which documented five years of activity consistent with suspected illegal oil extraction near pipelines in Jurf al-Nasr, where the Iran-aligned Iraqi armed faction Kataib Hezbollah is reported to control security in parts of the district.

Babil Governor Ali Turki al-Jamali, who denied the allegations, resigned on Thursday.

Read more: Satellite report flags suspected oil smuggling in Iraq’s Jurf al-Sakhr