Al-Halboosi says plaintiffs in his trial are "corrupt", defends contract with U.S. firm

Shafaq News/ The former speaker of the Iraqi parliament, Mohammad al-Halboosi, on Thursday accused plaintiffs, naming rival Sunni politicians, who filed lawsuits against him following his ouster of "corruption" as he defended a contract his party had signed with a U.S. firm.

Al-Halboosi, who was dismissed from office by the Iraqi Federal Supreme Court in November, said that the plaintiffs included former lawmaker Jamal al-Karboli, who was convicted of corruption charges, and former al-Anbar governor Sohaib al-Rawi, who was also accused of corruption.

The former speaker said that the contract his party, Takaddom, with the U.S. firm was not secret, and that "it was not illegal for political parties to contract with foreign firms" . He said that the contract was for the purposes of promoting the party's activities in the United States, and that it could include outreach to U.S. officials.