Diyala accuses Finance Ministry of “waging war” on province

Shafaq News– Diyala

Iraq’s Finance Ministry is deliberately withholding funds from Diyala province, threatening basic services and forcing projects to stall, a provincial official said on Wednesday.

Speaking at a press conference, Diyala Provincial Council Chairman Omar Al-Karawi explained that sewage works and road paving in parts of the province had stopped because Baghdad had failed to release approved allocations.

Diyala’s total budget stands at about $295 million, but more than $107 million remains unpaid, he estimated. Unfunded investment allocations for 2025 exceed about $44 million, while more than $55 million from the 2024 budget has yet to be disbursed.

Several projects would be suspended if the funding delays continue, Al-Karawi warned, urging direct intervention by caretaker Prime Minister Mohammed Shia Al-Sudani.

There was no immediate response from the Iraqi Ministry of Finance.

Diyala’s finances have also been affected by Iraq’s so-called “Theft of the Century” corruption scandal. In March 2025, government employees in the province went unpaid after the Finance Ministry withheld funds over missing financial documents linked to the case. The scandal, which came to light in October 2022, involved the fraudulent withdrawal of over 3 trillion Iraqi dinars ($2.5 billion) from tax deposits via fake bonds issued by five oil companies.

Finance Minister Taif Sami has been repeatedly summoned to parliament over delays in submitting the 2025 budget tables, blaming oil price volatility and unresolved disputes with the Kurdistan Region. Lawmakers have since filed legal complaints accusing the government of breaching constitutional deadlines.

Read more: $1.4T spent, still thirsty and in the dark: Iraq’s budget legacy under scrutiny