Overview
- Iraqi investigators said late Tuesday that they seized $11 million in US dollars and four billion Iraqi dinars from the Baghdad residence of Deputy Oil Minister Ali Maarij Al Bahadly and have placed him in custody before the Central Anti‑Corruption Criminal Court.
- Security forces using elite Counter‑Terrorism Service units carried out Green Zone raids that have led to at least 67 detentions, including lawmakers, as the campaign expanded beyond the oil ministry.
- Officials say the wave of arrests follows confessions by former Deputy Oil Minister Adnan al‑Jumaili, and the judiciary released images showing suitcases of tightly bundled cash and a drilled pool‑house wall used to hide funds.
- The crackdown comes after the U.S. Treasury blacklisted Al Bahadly for alleged diversion of Iraqi oil linked to Iran and is paired with a government demand that militias surrender weapons by a September deadline.
- Longstanding patronage in Iraq's oil sector helps explain the scale of the findings, but observers warn that the campaign will hinge on transparent legal process, political will, and whether prosecutions reach well‑connected networks.