Integrity Chief's Woes With Judiciary Intensify

The ongoing crisis involving the head of the Integrity Commission has escalated following the issuance of an arrest warrant by the Third Karkh Investigation Court. It comes in response to Haidar Hanoun’s repeated failure to appear in court to address accusations of bribery and provide responses regarding leaked audio recordings, despite multiple summonses.

In mid-September, the Supreme Judicial Council initiated legal proceedings against Hanoun following controversial statements he made during a press conference in Erbil, labeling them as "false allegations." At that press conference, Hanoun sharply criticized Judge Dhia Jafar during an emotional outburst, accusing him of concealing files related to the "Heist of the Century" scandal that has rocked the country's political landscape.

Hanoun expressed deep frustration, alleging that the Integrity Commission was being undermined and that crucial case files involving Noor Zuhair, a key figure in the corruption case, had disappeared. He warned that these issues significantly jeopardized Iraq’s anti-corruption efforts and the recovery of stolen state funds.

The Broader Struggle: Sudani vs. Zaydan

Hanoun's confrontation with the judiciary reflects a larger power struggle between PM Sudani and Faiq Zaydan, head of the Supreme Judicial Council. Zaydan’s discord with Sudani is multi-faceted, fueled in part by the fallout from the wiretapping scandal, which allegedly involved wiretaps on Zaydan’s family. However, this conflict also represents a turf war between the executive and judicial branches over who holds authority in pursuing high-profile corruption cases. On one side, Zaydan seeks to assert judicial independence, while on the other, Sudani supports Hanoun as a central figure in his anti-corruption campaign. This clash underscores a broader political struggle over control and influence in Iraq’s ongoing battle against corruption.