9 Iraqi officials dismissed following investigation into oil smuggling network

A worker controlling a vale at an oil refinery in Iraq. Photo: AFP Baghdad (IraqiNews.com) – Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi dismissed nine senior security and administrative officials on Saturday following an investigation into an oil smuggling network in the Jurf al-Sakhr area, ordering those involved to be referred to the judiciary. The dismissals targeted senior provincial police, intelligence, the National Security Service, Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF), Energy Police, and Oil Ministry pipeline officials in Babil province. The Babil governor also resigned following earlier denials of the illicit activity. An official committee confirmed illegal refineries and pipeline tampering via geospatial data. Reports mentioned that the operation siphoned fuel from strategic pipelines south of Baghdad, accumulating up to $30 million monthly since 2021. The Jurf al-Sakher area is a key stronghold of the Iran-backed group Kataib Hezbollah. According to the state-run Iraqi News Agency (INA), intelligence documents with satellite images showed crude oil and oil-derivatives smuggling activities carried out by an armed faction in Jurf al-Sakher. The faction was accused of tapping into a pipeline in the area. According to Iraq’s military spokesman Sabah al-Numan, the investigating committee confirmed the accuracy of the information.