Dawn Crackdown to include Iraqi corrupt ministers and governors
Shafaq News- Baghdad
Iraq's Dawn Crackdown (Sawlat al-Fajr) anti-corruption campaign will extend to ministers, directors-general, current and former lawmakers, and provincial governors in its next phase, to be carried out in more than three batches, MP Abdullah al-Khaigani told Shafaq News on Monday.
Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi, Supreme Judicial Council President Faiq Zaidan, and the security forces executing the operations have agreed to pursue corrupt figures without targeting any political group at the expense of another, al-Khaigani said. The operations will cover all Iraqi provinces.
Inside the investigation, a senior government source told Shafaq News that the detainees held under the Dawn Crackdown are being questioned daily under strict secrecy measures that bar visits from political parties, lawyers, and outside contacts.
Specialized teams from the Anti-Corruption Court and the Federal Integrity Commission oversee the process. The measures are intended to prevent leaks that could allow suspects to flee the country, conceal evidence, or influence proceedings.
Legal procedures for a second phase are already complete, covering corruption files in the health, oil, and electricity ministries, and tracing funds, properties, and investment projects linked to officials in the United States, Europe, and Turkiye. A new list of accused individuals is being prepared alongside a review of an illicit enrichment bill.
The Federal Integrity Commission confirmed that arrest warrants are being executed in accordance with the law and under judicial supervision. New files that may implicate additional figures continue to be opened, judicial sources said, as part of broader efforts to recover public funds and pursue suspects inside and outside Iraq.
The arrest campaign launched at dawn on June 28, targeting political officials, lawmakers, and businessmen. Al-Zaidi described it during a Council of Ministers session as the first phase of broader measures to recover public funds, tasking oversight bodies with receiving indications of corruption or negligence across state institutions. On Saturday, he called on Iraqis to report corruption and directed that financial rewards be paid to informants.
Read more: Iraq detains top officials in anti-corruption sweep: What we know so far
