ERBIL, Kurdistan Region – Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi met with Interpol Secretary-General Jurgen Stock on Tuesday to discuss strengthening ties in the fight against corruption and terrorism, according to an official statement.
“In the meeting, exchange of experience, building capacity [for] information crimes, social media, money laundering and terrorism, and working with Iraq in its campaign for retrieving smuggled money and fleeing offenders were discussed,” read a statement published on the Iraqi prime minister’s website.
Interpol played an important role in the extradition of the ex-Iraqi trade minister Falah al-Sudani from Lebanon to Iraq on January 25.
An Iraqi court sentenced Sudani to 21 years in jail earlier this month for his role in a corruption scandal connected to Iraq’s food rations program.
Berlin-based monitor Transparency International recently ranked Iraq 169th out of a list of 180 countries for corruption in its latest report. Syria ranked 178th, Iran came in at number 130, Turkey was 81st.
Abadi has vowed to fight corruption, calling it a threat no less dangerous than ISIS. He has also expressed concern about corruption the Kurdistan Region, citing it as a reason for delaying payment of civil servant salaries.
Vast amounts of money remain unaccounted for after ISIS seized swathes of the country in 2014. A report published by the Central Bank of Iraq last year estimated the group had stolen $101 million and 856.5 billion Iraqi dinars ($727.6 million) from banks across its territories – almost $830 million in total.
Iraq declared victory over ISIS in December 2017, but a number of fighters and possible sleeper cells remain at large. The statement said the Iraqi leader and Interpol chief discussed working together to hunt down fugitive offenders.
Stock reiterated his support for Iraq, pledging to stand with Baghdad in preserving the nation’s security. He praised Iraq’s advancements in new policing and biometric technologies and paid homage to the Iraqis who have shed their blood in the defense of international security.
“Mr. Jürgen Stock praised the Iraqi Army victories and revealed that Iraq has become an active member in building and activating a system of advanced notices and alerts, building an international biometric system, and using artificial intelligence and data bases for revealing fraud and smuggling crimes,” the statement added.
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