New Iraqi central prison planned as jails overflow

Shafaq News- Al-Muthanna

Construction has begun on a new central prison that will cover five hectares in Iraq’s Al-Muthanna, the province’s technical deputy governor Haider Al-Wahami said on Sunday.

In a statement, Al-Wahami added that the project will be named Al-Samawah Central Prison.

The Strategic Center for Human Rights in Iraq had estimated in 2024 that the country’s inmate population at nearly 100,000, with some facilities operating at up to 300% of capacity. This congestion, according to the group, has fueled outbreaks of respiratory diseases and scabies and forced prison administrations to house minor offenders alongside inmates convicted of serious crimes.

Iraq has taken steps to ease the pressure, including enforcing a revised General Amnesty Law that led to the release of thousands jailed for minor offenses, financial disputes, and procedural violations, excluding terrorism-related offenders, violent crimes, and major drug trafficking cases.

Despite those measures, prison capacity is expected to face renewed strain as Iraq prepares to receive additional ISIS-linked detainees transferred from northeastern Syria under US-mediated arrangements, a number that could reach up to 7,000, according to the US Central Command.

Read more: Iraqi prisons overcrowded, plagued by diseases, drugs, and torture, report finds