Below, we have attempted to set out the major sources of law in Iraq. Giving examples from the criminal law field. 1. Post 2005 by law (qanun) passed by the Council of Representatives, approved by the Presidency Council and Published in the Official Gazette e.g. • Law No. 13 of 2007, Reintroducing the safeguards contained […]
Read MoreWith the aim of identifying potential areas for proposed reform, we have closely compared the provisions of the Criminal Procedure Code No. 23 of 1971 with the provisions of the following legal instruments that carry the force of law within Iraq: the 2005 Iraqi Constitution, the UN International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, the […]
Read MoreSee court structure diagram and criminal cassation pathways diagram. Iraq is a party to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights which states at Article 14(5) “Everyone convicted of a crime shall have the right to his conviction and sentence being reviewed by a higher tribunal according to law.” The mechanism by which Iraq […]
Read MoreAmendments to the Criminal Procedure Code in the rest of Iraq are dealt with here. The view of Kurdish lawyers, judges and legislators is that, save for laws relating to the exclusive federal powers as listed in Article 110 of the 2005 Constitution, and following Kurdish Decree No. 11 of 1992 (arabic), new laws and […]
Read MoreMuntadar al-Zaidi the Iraqi journalist, jailed after hurling his shoes at former President George W. Bush, was released on Tuesday 15 September 2009. He was arrested on 14 December 2008 and initially sentenced to 3 years imprisonment. His sentence was reduced by the Cassation Court to 1 year and he served 9 months, his sentence […]
Read MoreThe Iraqi High Tribunal, also (more accurately) translated as the Supreme Iraqi Criminal Court is the body established to try Iraqi nationals or residents accused of genocide, crimes against humanity, war crimes or other serious crimes committed between 1968 and 2003. The Tribunal’s predecessor was established pursuant to CPA Order 48, which delegated authority to the […]
Read MoreOn 2 September 2009, at the Rusafa Felony Court in Baghdad, four men, all Iraqi security force members, were convicted and sentenced to death for the robbery and brutal murder of eight bank guards at the the Zuwiya branch of the Rafidain Bank in Central Baghdad on 28 July 2009. The men were named as […]
Read MoreThe Voice of Iraq reported on 3 September 2009 that: “The Commission of Integrity (CoI) has arrested a top official from the Ministry of Transportation in the course of taking a bribe”, said officials close to the case. The source, who spoke on condition of anonymity, declined to give more details about the name of […]
Read MoreIn 2009 Baghdad and Erbil are subject to a veritable barrage of law reform proposals. The Council of Representatives is sitting on proposals for constitutional review and bills such as those to give a sure footing to the judiciary; to give a proper structure to the various anti-corruption bodies; for a constitutionally compliant process to […]
Read MoreUnited Nations Instruments Iraq voted in favour of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights at the United Nations General Assembly in 1948. Iraq is a signatory to the following International Human Rights Treaties: Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide, acceded 1959 International Covenant on Economic Social and Cultural Rights, signed […]
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