International experts join Iraq effort to trace stolen funds

Shafaq News- Baghdad

US and other international experts specializing in tracing stolen or smuggled funds have arrived in Baghdad to support Iraqi efforts to recover public money, an informed source told Shafaq News on Monday, as the government presses ahead with its Dawn Crackdown anti-corruption campaign, launched on June 28.

The international committee, which has been in the capital for several days, began working with Iraq’s anti-corruption team to track funds, particularly dollars, drawing on the experts’ knowledge of financial flows to identify the parties involved and methods used to smuggle public money.

The source expected the coming period to bring arrests of figures he described as “corruption whales,” indicating that the campaign would reach beyond ministers, deputy ministers, and directors-general to other key suspects whose identities would be disclosed later.

Meanwhile, money recovered from some individuals convicted of stealing public funds is undergoing audits and technical procedures to establish its original source before being processed through the state treasury system.

Salam Al-Zubaidi, a senior member of the Al-Nasr (Victory) Coalition, told Shafaq News that Baghdad was cooperating with the team and other international bodies experienced in combating corruption and recovering assets. He added that Iraq was seeking Interpol cooperation to arrest senior suspects who previously held political or government positions, including former ministers.

“No one is exempt from the law, and there is no immunity for the corrupt."

Iraqi authorities detained at least 210 officials, lawmakers, employees, and business figures during the first six weeks of the Dawn Crackdown, according to a Shafaq News review of cases documented between June 28 and August 9.

Read more: Corruption arrests in Iraq pass 210 under PM al-Zaidi