+8,000 factories fuel Baghdad's pollution

Shafaq News/ Nearly 8,000 industrial facilities in Baghdad are contributing to rising levels of air, water, and soil pollution, Iraq’s Environment Minister Halo al-Askari reported on Monday.

Speaking during Iraq’s first Environmental Police Conference, held in Baghdad, Al-Askari attributed the capital’s worsening environmental conditions to expanding industrial activity and rapid urban growth.

He also recalled the October 2024 pollution crisis in Baghdad, when the Environment and Interior Ministries—alongside the Environmental Police—intervened to curb unregulated practices, emphasizing the need for sustained monitoring, faster detection of violations, and firm closure of unlawful operations that threaten public health and natural ecosystems.

Meanwhile, Interior Ministry Undersecretary for Federal Security Affairs, Lt. Gen. Samko Nadhim Amin, delivering remarks on behalf of Minister Abdul Amir al-Shammari, described the Environmental Police Directorate as a core component of the ministry’s pollution control, reiterating its support for enhancing the directorate’s capacity and expanding cooperation with other institutions.