Iraq : country focus : country of origin information report : May 2024.
Date: 2024-05-28
Institutions: European Union Agency for Asylum
Subjects: Iraq, LGBTIQ persons, aid to refugees, children's rights, communications profession, discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation, economic policy, education, employment policy, ethnic group, food security, health care, housing, international protection, living conditions, political militant, position of women, poverty, religious group, report, socioeconomic conditions, water resources, women's rights

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Iraq - 
Country Focus 

 
 
 
 
 
Iraq - Country Focus 

Country of Origin Information Report 

May 2024

 
 
Manuscript completed in May 2024 

Neither the European Union Agency for Asylum (EUAA) nor any person acting on behalf of the 
EUAA is responsible for the use that might be made of the information contained within this 
publication. 

Luxembourg: Publications Office of the European Union, 2024 

PDF 

ISBN 978-92-9410-070-2  doi: 10.2847/761193  BZ-09-24-245-EN-N 

© European Union Agency for Asylum (EUAA), 2024 

Cover photo: An old man sitting on his carriage in Najaf, Mansoreh Motamedi, ©gettyimages, 
2022, url 

Reproduction is authorised provided the source is acknowledged. For any use or reproduction 
of photos or other material that is not under the EUAA copyright, permission must be sought 
directly from the copyright holders. 

 
 
 
IRAQ – COUNTRY FOCUS 

Acknowledgements 

This report was written by the Country of Origin Information (COI) sector of EUAA. 

The following national asylum and migration departments reviewed this report: 

•  Germany, Federal Office for Migration and Refugees (BAMF) 

•  Greece, Greek Asylum Service (GAS), General Secretariat for Migration Policy 

•  The Netherlands, Office for Country Information and Language Analysis, Ministry of 

Justice (OCILA) 

•  Slovak Republic, Department of Documentation and Foreign Cooperation, Ministry of 

Interior.  

The review carried out by the mentioned departments contributes to the overall quality of the 
report, but it does not necessarily imply their formal endorsement of the final report, which is 
the full responsibility of the EUAA.

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IRAQ – COUNTRY FOCUS 

Contents 

Acknowledgements ........................................................................................................................ 3 

Contents .......................................................................................................................................... 5 

Disclaimer ........................................................................................................................................ 7 

Glossary and abbreviations ........................................................................................................... 8 

Introduction ................................................................................................................................... 10 

Methodology ....................................................................................................................................... 10 

Defining the terms of reference ................................................................................. 10 

Collecting information ................................................................................................... 10 

Quality control .................................................................................................................. 11 

Sources .................................................................................................................................................. 11 

Structure and use of the report ....................................................................................................... 11 

Maps ............................................................................................................................................... 12 

1. 

Treatment of selected profiles ......................................................................................... 13 

1.1. 

Individuals perceived as opposing the state and state-affiliated actors .....................13 

1.1.1.  Members of political opposition parties, political and human rights 
activists, protesters .........................................................................................................14 

1.1.2.  Journalists and media workers ....................................................................... 19 

1.1.3.  Individuals with (perceived) affiliation to ISIL .............................................. 21 

1.2.  Ethnic and religious minorities .............................................................................................. 28 

1.2.1.  Treatment of ethno-religious minorities ...................................................... 30 

1.3.  Women ......................................................................................................................................... 34 

1.3.1.  Violence against women .................................................................................. 37 

1.3.2.  Women without male support ......................................................................... 43 

1.4.  Children ........................................................................................................................................ 44 

1.4.1.  Child recruitment by armed groups .............................................................. 45 

1.4.2.  Children with perceived affiliation to ISIL .................................................... 45 

1.4.3.  Children without civil documentation ............................................................ 47 

1.4.4.  Child exploitation and child marriage........................................................... 48 

1.4.5.  Access to education .......................................................................................... 49 

1.5.  LGBTIQ ........................................................................................................................................ 49 

1.6.  Individuals perceived as transgressing moral and religious norms ............................ 51 

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EUROPEAN UNION AGENCY FOR ASYLUM 

2. 

Key socio-economic indicators for Baghdad and Sulaymaniyah ................................ 57 

2.1.  Country overview ...................................................................................................................... 57 

2.1.1.  Socio-economic situation .................................................................................. 57 

2.1.2.  Entry, residency requirements and access to civil documentation and 
services ............................................................................................................................. 61 

2.2. Baghdad ...................................................................................................................................... 65 

2.2.1.  Entry, residency requirements and access to civil documentation and 
services ............................................................................................................................ 65 

2.2.2.  Economy.............................................................................................................. 66 

2.2.3. Employment ........................................................................................................ 66 

2.2.4.  Poverty .................................................................................................................. 67 

2.2.5.  Food security ..................................................................................................... 68 

2.2.6.  Healthcare .......................................................................................................... 69 

2.2.7.  Education ............................................................................................................ 69 

2.2.8.  Housing and living conditions ....................................................................... 69 

2.2.9.  Water and sanitation .......................................................................................... 71 

2.3. Sulaymaniyah ............................................................................................................................. 72 

2.3.1.   Entry, residency requirements and access to civil documentation and 
services ............................................................................................................................. 72 

2.3.2.   Economy ............................................................................................................. 74 

2.3.3.   Employment ....................................................................................................... 75 

2.3.4.   Poverty ................................................................................................................. 76 

2.3.5.   Food security ..................................................................................................... 76 

2.3.6.   Healthcare .......................................................................................................... 76 

2.3.7.   Education ............................................................................................................ 77 

2.3.8.   Housing and living conditions ....................................................................... 78 

2.3.9.   Water and sanitation ........................................................................................ 78 

Annex 1: Bibliography .................................................................................................................. 80 

Oral sources, including anonymous sources ............................................................................ 80 

Public sources .................................................................................................................................... 80 

Annex 2: Terms of Reference ..................................................................................................... 121 

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IRAQ – COUNTRY FOCUS 

Disclaimer 

This report was written according to the EUAA COI Report Methodology (2023). The report is 
based on carefully selected sources of information. All sources used are referenced.  

The information contained in this report has been researched, evaluated and analysed with 
utmost care within a limited timeframe. However, this document does not claim to be 
exhaustive. If a particular event, person or organisation is not mentioned in the report, this 
does not mean that the event has not taken place or that the person or organisation does not 
exist.  

Furthermore, this report is not conclusive as to the determination or merit of any particular 
application for international protection. Terminology used should not be regarded as 
indicative of a particular legal position.  

‘Refugee’, ‘risk’ and similar terminology are used as generic terminology and not in the legal 
sense as applied in the EU Asylum Acquis, the 1951 Refugee Convention and the 1967 
Protocol relating to the Status of Refugees.  

Neither EUAA nor any person acting on its behalf may be held responsible for the use which 
may be made of the information contained in this report.  

On 19 January 2022, the European Asylum Support Office (EASO) became the European 
Union Agency for Asylum (EUAA). All references to EASO, EASO products and bodies should 
be understood as references to the EUAA. 

The drafting of this report was finalised on 8 May 2024. Any event taking place after this date 
is not included in this report. More information on the reference period for this report can be 
found in the methodology section of the Introduction. 

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Glossary and abbreviations 

Term 

AAH 

Asayish 

Definition 

Asaib Ahl al‐Haq (The League of the Righteous) 

Internal security and intelligence services of the Kurdistan Region 
of Iraq 

CSID 

Civil Status Identification Card  

EU+ countries  

Member States of the European Union and associated countries 

Fasliya 

A practice of trading women/girls to settle tribal disputes 

FGM/C 

Female Genital Mutilation/Cutting 

IDP 

Ikhbar 

ISF 

ISIL 

KDP 

KH 

KRG 

KRI 

Internally Displaced Person 

A tribal procedure aimed at reporting a relative with perceived 
affiliation to ISIS 

Iraqi Security Forces 

Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant; also known as Islamic State of 
Iraq and Syria (ISIS), the Islamic State (IS), or Daesh 

Kurdistan Democratic Party 

Kataib Hezbollah. Iranian-backed Shia militia that is part of the 
Popular Mobilization Units 

Kurdistan Regional Government 

Kurdistan Region of Iraq 

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IRAQ – COUNTRY FOCUS 

Term 

KSF 

Definition 

Kurdish Security Forces 

Member States 

Member States of the European Union 

Mukhtar 

Local community leader 

Nahwa  

A tribal tradition where the cousin, uncle or other male relative of 
a girl can prohibit her marriage to a person outside of the family 

PDS 

PKK 

PMF 

PUK 

Public Distribution System card for food assistance 

Kurdistan Workers’ Party 

Popular Mobilisation Forces 

Patriotic Union of Kurdistan 

Refugee Convention   The 1951 Convention relating to the status of refugees and its 1967 

Protocol (referred to in EU asylum legislation and by the CJEU as 
‘the Geneva Convention’) 

Tabriya 

A tribal procedure aimed at disowning a person, e.g., in cases of 
affiliation with ISIL 

THB 

Trafficking in human beings 

UNHCR  

United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees 

UNAMI 

United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq 

UNID 

Unified Identification Card  

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EUROPEAN UNION AGENCY FOR ASYLUM 

Introduction 

The purpose of this report is to provide relevant information for the assessment of applications 
for international protection, including refugee status and subsidiary protection, and in 
particular for use in updating EUAA’s country guidance document on Iraq. This report should 
be read in conjunction with the EUAA COI report: Iraq – Security Situation (May 2024). 

The report provides information on the treatment of selected profiles by state and non-state 
actors as well as on key socio-economic indicators in the country, with specific focus on the 
cities of Baghdad and Sulaymaniyah. The reference period for the chapters related to 
Treatment of selected profiles is January 2022 – March 2024; the reference period for the 
chapters related to Key socio-economic indicators for Baghdad and Sulaymaniyah is February 
2023 – March 2024. 

The report is partly to be read as an update of the EUAA COI report on Iraq: Targeting of 
Individuals published in February 2022 and of the EUAA COI report on Iraq: Key socio-
economic indicators for Baghdad, Basrah and Sulaymaniyah published in November 2021. 

Methodology 

This report was drafted by the EUAA and reviewed by EUAA and national COI departments in 
EU+ countries, as mentioned in the Acknowledgements section. This report is produced in line 
with the EUAA COI Report Methodology (2023) 1 and the EUAA COI Writing and Referencing 
Style Guide (2023).2 

Defining the terms of reference 

The terms of reference (ToR) of this report were defined by EUAA based on discussions held 
and input received from COI experts in the EUAA COI specialist network on Iraq and from 
policy experts of EU+ countries appointed to EUAA Country Guidance network. The ToR also 
built on previous EUAA COI reports on Iraq covering the same topics. The Terms of Reference 
for this report can be found in Annex 2: Terms of Reference. 

Collecting information 

This report is based on information gathered from extensive desk research using 
predominantly public, specialised paper-based, and electronic sources as well as interviews 
with experts. All information from these sources was consulted within time constraints. Some 
limited additional information was added during the finalisation of this report in response to 
feedback received during the quality control process, until 7 May 2024.  

1 EUAA, EUAA Country of Origin Information (COI) Report Methodology, February 2023, url 
2 EUAA, EUAA Writing and Referencing Guide for EUAA Country of Origin Information (COI) Reports, February 
2023, url 

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IRAQ – COUNTRY FOCUS 

Quality control  

To ensure that the authors respected the EUAA COI Report Methodology and that the Terms 
of Reference were comprehensively addressed, a review was carried out by COI specialists 
from the countries and organisations listed as reviewers in the Acknowledgements section. All 
comments made by the reviewers were taken into consideration and most of them were 
implemented in the final draft of this report, which was finalised on 8 May 2024. EUAA also 
performed the final quality review and editing of the text.  

The review carried out by the mentioned departments, experts or organisations contributes to 
the overall quality of the report, but it does not necessarily imply their formal endorsement of 
the final report, which is the full responsibility of EUAA. 

Sources  

In accordance with the EUAA COI Report Methodology, the content of this report relies on a 
range of different open-source material, as well as interviews and email communication with 
oral sources. Information was mainly gathered from public reports by international 
organisations; reports produced by various bodies of the United Nations; civil society, 
advocacy groups, humanitarian organisations, and NGOs; COI reports of national asylum 
administrations; media, specialised academic publications and think tanks. In addition to using 
publicly available documentary sources, interviews with experts were conducted in order to 
supplement information gaps and/or to further corroborate some information. The chapters 
related to entry, residency requirements and access to civil documentation and services 
extensively rely on information provided by UNHCR. Some oral sources interviewed by the 
EUAA preferred to remain anonymous for security reasons. Sources were assessed for their 
background, publication history, reputability, and current knowledge of the situation on the 
ground. All the public and oral sources referenced in this report are cited and described in 
Annex 1: Bibliography. 

Structure and use of the report  

The report comprises two main chapters, each focusing on the treatment of selected profiles 
and on key socio-economic indicators for Baghdad and Sulaymaniyah respectively. Chapter 1 
is divided into six sub-chapters. Each sub-chapter contains information on the general 
situation of selected groups of individuals or profiles within the Iraqi society as well as their 
treatment by state, state-affiliated actors and non-state actors. For better readability, cross-
links among the sub-chapters of the report are provided where information regarding one or 
more profiles overlaps with information related to other profiles covered in this report. Chapter 
2 is divided in three sub-chapters. The first gives an overview of the socio-economic situation 
in the country as well as an overview at country level of the requirements needed to enter and 
settle in some governorates/cities, and the requirements needed to access civil 
documentation and services. The following two sub-chapters contain the same information 
specifically for the cities of Baghdad and Sulaymaniyah, respectively. 

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EUROPEAN UNION AGENCY FOR ASYLUM 

Maps 

Map 1. Iraq 3  

3Map 1: UN, Iraq - Map No. 3835 Rev.6, July 2014 

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IRAQ – COUNTRY FOCUS 

1. 

Treatment of selected profiles  

1.1. 

Individuals perceived as opposing the state and 
state-affiliated actors 

Article 38 of the 2005 Iraqi Constitution guarantees freedom of expression, press, printing, 
advertisement, media and publication, freedom of assembly and peaceful demonstration, ‘in a 
way that does not violate public order and morality’.4 Despite such provisions, some laws 
inherited from the previous era and still in force in Iraq are used by authorities to restrict these 
same rights.5 Sources noted that Article 226 of the Penal Code,6 in particular, has been used 
by Iraqi authorities to suppress dissent and critical voices in the country.7 Civil society 
organisations stated that it is unclear what can be deemed as an ‘insult’ against authorities, as 
stipulated in the aforementioned article8 and that the ‘broad and vague language’ used in the 
Penal Code allows Iraqi authorities to target activists for their opinions.9 Sarah Sanbar, Iraq 
researcher at Human Rights Watch, observed that those who ‘insult’ Iraqi or Kurdish 
authorities continue to face ‘serious repercussions, including arrest, harassment, kidnapping, 
arbitrary detention, and death threats, from both state and non-state actors.’10 Notable recent 
cases include the arrest of Ali Al Abadi, president of the Iraq Center for Human Rights, in 
December 2023, for insult and defamation, as well as the arrest of political analyst 
Mohammed Na’na Hassan, for insulting the Prime Minister Al Sudani on TV. Journalist Islam 
Kashani was also arrested for criticising corruption in the KRG.11 

In November 2022, the Iraqi government introduced a draft law on Cybercrime foreseeing 
penalties ranging from seven to ten years of prison and fines of at least 10 million Iraqi dinars 
for anyone using cyberspace ‘with the intention to undermine religious, family or social values 
and principles’.12 The draft law further foresees that anyone found guilty of publishing online 
content ‘undermining the country’s independence, unity, and safety, or its supreme economic, 
political, military, or security interests can be sentenced to life imprisonment and a fine of up 

4 Article 38 reads: ‘The State shall guarantee in a way that does not violate public order and morality: A. Freedom of 
expression using all means. B. Freedom of press, printing, advertisement, media and publication. C. Freedom of 
assembly and peaceful demonstration, and this shall be regulated by law.’ Iraq, Constitution of the Republic of Iraq, 
15 October 2005, url, Art. 38 
5 UNDP, Media landscape in Iraq, 5 February 2024, url, p. 8 
6 Article 226 reads: ‘Any person who publicly insults the National Assembly or the government or the courts or the 
armed forces or any other constitutional body or the public authorities or official or 1 semiofficial agencies or 
departments is punishable by a term of imprisonment not exceeding 7 years or detention or a fine.’ Iraq, Iraqi Penal 
Code (Law No. 111 of 1969), 1969, url, Art. 226 
7 Mansour R., Tackling Iraq’s unaccountable state, Chatham House, 11 December 2023, url; Al Kaabi A., Knights M., 
Iraq's "Resistance" Factions Shift to Major Crackdown on Media Spaces, Washington Institute for Near East Policy, 
28 February 2024, url; Al Jazeera, The long shadow of Saddam’s dictatorship in Iraq, 16 April 2023, url 
8 Mansour R., Tackling Iraq’s unaccountable state in Chatham House, 11 December 2023, url 
9 Al Jazeera, The long shadow of Saddam’s dictatorship in Iraq, 16 April 2023, url 
10 Sanbar S., email communication with EUAA, 16 March 2024 
11 Sanbar S., email communication with EUAA, 16 March 2024 
12 RSF, Draconian bills resubmitted to Iraqi parliament, 20 December 2022, url  

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EUROPEAN UNION AGENCY FOR ASYLUM 

to 50 million Iraqi dinars.13 In a study published in February 2024, the United Nations 
Development Programme (UNDP) reported that the approval of the draft law has been 
suspended due to the opposition.14  

In May 2023, Parliament held a second reading of a proposed law on Freedom of Expression 
and Peaceful Assembly. The draft law prohibits the undermining of ‘religions, religious beliefs, 
sects’. Under the proposed law, gatherings are allowed only upon prior permission from the 
authorities, obtained at least five days in advance.15 Both draft laws raised significant criticism 
among international organisations and civil society groups due to the alleged risk of restricting 
freedom of expression by imposing imprisonment and fines.16  

In an article published in March 2024 by The New Arab, a member of the Iraqi Parliament 
reported that the Coordination Framework was willing to pass the law.17 A new Regulation (No. 
1 of 2023) for Digital Content18 was proposed on 16 March 2023. Such regulation, if passed, 
would allow authorities to remove online content, impose fines on content providers and issue 
criminal penalties against internet users.19 The provision drew criticism among civil society 
organisations, warning of ‘serious implications’ on the rights to freedom of opinion and 
expression and restrictions of freedoms within the online civic space in Iraq.20  

1.1.1.  Members of political opposition parties, political and human 

rights activists, protesters 

Members of political opposition parties 

Various sources reported that cases of violence towards political opponents by unidentified 
armed actors, Iran-backed militias, and groups linked to Popular Mobilisation Forces (PMF) 
occurred in both Federal Iraq and in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq (KRI).21  

13 AI, Iraq: Draft laws threaten rights to freedom of expression and peaceful assembly, 18 July 2023, url; RSF, Iraq,  
accessed 12 March 2024, url; USCIRF, Country Update Iraq, September 2023, url, p. 3 
14 UNDP, Media landscape in Iraq, 5 February 2024, url, p. 8 
15 AI, Iraq: Draft laws threaten rights to freedom of expression and peaceful assembly, 18 July 2023, url 
16 IOHR, Press release regarding the draft law on freedom of expression and peaceful demonstration, 13 April 2023, 
url; ICSSI, The draft law on freedom of expression, assembly, and peaceful protest threatens to further restrict 
constitutionally guaranteed democratic rights in Iraq, 13 April 2023, url; AI, Iraq: Draft laws threaten rights to 
freedom of expression and peaceful assembly, 18 July 2023, url; Freedom House, Freedom on the Net 2023, Iraq, 
4 October 2023, url; New York Times (The), As Iraq Tries to Chill Critics, Its Newest Target Is Social Media, 16 July 
2023, url 
17 New Arab (The), Iraqi and Kurdish authorities under fire for 'restricting freedom of expression’, 4 March 2024, url 
18 Knights M., Iraqi CMC Draft Regulation on Digital Content in Iraq, in: Washington Institute for Near East Policy, 16  
May 2023, url 
19 Freedom House, Freedom on the Net 2023, Iraq, 4 October 2023, url; Knights M. et al., Iraq’s New Regime 
Change: How Tehran-Backed Terrorist Organizations and Militias Captured the Iraqi State in: CTC Sentinel, 
December 2023, Volume 16, Issue 11, url 
20 Article 19, Iraq: Drop draft digital content legislation and protect free speech online, 16 March 2023, url 
21 USDOS, 2022 Country Report on Human Rights Practices: Iraq, 20 March 2023, url, p. 5; Freedom House, 
Freedom in the World 2023 – Iraq (covering facts of 2022), 2023, url; IOHR, Threats and attacks against members 
of Parliament (MPs) who do not belong to influential forces, 2 August 2023, url 

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IRAQ – COUNTRY FOCUS 

During the reference period of this report, political activists faced arrests and harassment for 
statements critical of authorities,22 militias and Iran,23 with the aforementioned Article 226 of 
the Penal Code being widely used against critics of Al Sudani’s government.24 Amnesty 
International (AI) also noted that persons expressing political criticism continued to be 
criminally prosecuted in Iraq.25 For instance, in December 2022, activist Haidar al-Zaidi was 
sentenced to three years of prison under Article 226 of the Iraqi Penal Code for having 
published a tweet expressing criticism over a deceased head of the PMF. Human rights 
activists in Baghdad accused the PMF to be responsible for the arrest,26 considering the 
judicial decision as ‘an alarming escalation of legal threats against civil society’.27 Al-Zaidi was 
eventually released and the charges against him dropped.28 In February 2022, Ali Akram Al-
Bayati, a prominent human rights defender and member of Iraq’s High Commission for Human 
Rights (IHCHR), received a defamation legal complaint because of his investigation on 
allegations of torture of detainees.29 The United Nations Committee Against Torture (UN CAT) 
underlined ‘the lack of protection and immunity of the Iraqi High Commission for Human 
Rights’ (IHCHR) members from retaliations and other types of intimidation while carrying out 
their official duties.30  

In the KRI, some rival politicians were targeted and silenced.31 For instance, activities of the 
New Generation Party and its affiliated media outlet, Nalia Radio and Television (NRT), were 
reportedly repressed in the KRI.32 In August 2022, security forces arrested deputy members of 
an opposition Kurdish party that called for a public protest against the Kurdistan Regional 
Government (KRG) and accused the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) of corruption.33 

Activists and protesters 

In the KRI, mosque preachers have been arrested by Kurdish authorities for criticising the 
ruling regime over lack of provision of basic services.34 KRG-security forces arbitrarily arrested 
and prosecuted activists and perceived critics.35 Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) and PUK, 
each one with its security apparatus, repressed dissidents, and peaceful protesters. A climate 
of fear is reported by activists, both in Federal Iraq and in the KRI, resulting in self-censorship. 
Cases of ordinary citizens, unfamiliar with activism, being arrested for posting online content 
critical of authorities, were reported in 2022. According to Freedom House, these cases 

22 HRW, World Report 2023, 11 January 2024, url; Foreign Policy, Iraq’s Prime Minister Is Silencing Human Rights 
Advocates, 2 June 2022, url 
23 USDOS, 2022 Country Report on Human Rights Practices: Iraq, 20 March 2023, url, p. 17 
24 Al Kaabi A., Knights M., Iraq's "Resistance" Factions Shift to Major Crackdown on Media Spaces, Washington  
Institute for Near East Policy, 28 February 2024, url 
25 AI, Iraq: Government must match rhetoric on human rights with meaningful action, 15 March 2023, url 
26 HRW, Iraq: Activist Imprisoned for Peaceful Criticism of Security Forces, 6 December 2022, url; BBC, Iraqi activist  
jailed over tweet 'insulting' Iran-backed militia force, 7 December 2022, url  
27 New Arab (The), HRW condemns sentencing Iraqi activist for three years over a Twitter post, 7 December 2022,  
url 
28 AI, Iraq: Open Letter to Prime Minister Al-Sudani: End Iraq’s Reign of Impunity, 15 March 2023, url 
29 HRW, Drop Complaint Against Iraq Human Rights Commission Member, 10 March 2022, url; Foreign Policy, Iraq’s 
Prime Minister Is Silencing Human Rights Advocates, 2 June 2022, url 
30 UN CAT, Concluding observations on the second periodic report of Iraq *, 15 June 2022, url, para.40 
31 HRW, World Report 2024 Iraq, 11 January 2024, url 
32 Freedom House, Freedom in the World 2023 – Iraq (covering facts of 2022), 2023, url 
33 BTI, 2024 Country Report, url, p. 11 
34 Freedom House, Freedom in the World 2023 – Iraq (covering facts of 2022), 2023, url 
35 AI, The State of the World's Human Rights; Iraq 2022, 27 March 2023, url   

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EUROPEAN UNION AGENCY FOR ASYLUM 

supposedly indicate authorities’ capacity to monitor social media.36 Environmental activists 
also faced death threats, violence, intimidation and arbitrary detention by government officials 
and armed groups.37  

The Gulf Centre for Human Rights (GCHR),38 in September 2022, reported that a great number 
of peaceful demonstrators faced abduction and torture by non-state armed actors.39 In its 
report on accountability in Iraq published in June 2022, the United Nations Assistance Mission 
for Iraq (UNAMI) and the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights 
(OHCHR) highlighted a persistent climate of fear and intimidation due to the impunity of 
targeted killings of protesters by unidentified armed elements. According to the source, 
several activists had to relocate, including outside of Iraq, due to security reasons.40 Violent 
repression of protesters and arrests of journalists covering protests continued in 2023.41 In an 
article published in December 2023, Renad Mansour, a senior research fellow and project 
director of the Iraq Initiative at Chatham House, noted that the ‘elite power’ relies on security 
and judicial authorities to curb freedom of expression and protest, also by issuing arrest 
warrants to individuals being perceived as a threat.42 Kidnapping, disappearance and killings 
were also used by militias to target protesters.43 

In July 2022, after months of political deadlock following the October 2021 election, 
supporters of Muqtada Al-Sadr44 prevented the functioning of Parliament for several months 
as a sign of prolonged protest, after the resignation of 73 legislators of the Sadrist 
Movement.45 In August 2022, protests turned into violent clashes between Al-Sadr’s militias, 
named Peace Brigades, and members of the Iraqi Security Forces (ISF). BBC reported that ‘at 
least’ 23 Al-Sadr’s supporters were killed.46 The UN documented 46 deaths and 300 injuries 
as a result of the clashes, which occurred in Baghdad on 29 and 30 August 2022.47 Fighting 
stopped only after Al-Sadr’s call to withdraw from the Green Zone and to end the protest,48 
clearing the way for the formation of a Coordination Framework–backed government in 
October 2022.49 

36 Freedom House, Freedom in the World 2023 – Iraq (covering facts of 2022), 2023, url 
37 HRW, Iraq: Environmentalists Face Retaliation, 23 February 2023, url; UN Human Rights Council, UN Human 
Rights Chief ends visit to Iraq, Statement, Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, 9 August 2023, url 
38 The GCHR is a Lebanon-based NGO, which documents the situation of human rights defenders in the Gulf region  
and neighbouring countries since 2011, see GCHR, webpage, url 
39 GCHR, Patterns of Torture in Iraq, A Report by the Gulf Centre for Human Rights (GCHR), September 2022, url, p.  
12 
40 UNAMI/OHCHR, Update on Accountability in Iraq, Limited progress towards justice for human rights violations 
and abuses by ‘Unidentified Armed Elements’, June 2022, url, pp. 10, 11 
41 HRW, World Report 2024 Iraq, 11 January 2024, url 
42 Mansour R., Tackling Iraq’s unaccountable state in: Chatham House, 11 December 2023, url 
43 USDOS, 2022 Country Report on Human Rights Practices: Iraq, 20 March 2023, url, pp. 4-5 
44 Muqtada al-Sadr is an influential Shia cleric, for more information see Reuters, Who is the Iraqi Shi'ite cleric  
Muqtada al-Sadr?, 20 July 2023, url  
45 Freedom House, Freedom in the World 2023 – Iraq (covering facts of 2022), 2023, url  
46 BBC, Iraq: At least 23 dead amid fighting after Moqtada al-Sadr quits, 30 August 2022, url 
47 UNSC, Implementation of resolution 2631 (2022) 
Report of the Secretary-General, 26 September 2022, url, para.19 
48 BBC, Iraq: Tense calm in Baghdad after cleric issues appeal, url, 30 August 2022 
49 Freedom House, Freedom in the World 2023 – Iraq (covering facts of 2022), 2023, url  

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Arrests of activists and politicians by security forces took place in August 2022, on occasion of 
a pre-announced protest in Sulaymaniyah, Erbil and Dohuk.50 In September 2023, security 
forces opened fire against protesters in Kirkuk leading to the death of four persons and 
injuring of 16 persons.51 In the KRI, authorities linked both to the KDP and the PUK, continued 
to restrict the possibility for protesters to gather,52 arbitrarily arresting, prosecuting and 
imprisoning activists, journalists and individuals perceived as critics.53 Security forces, 
including the Iraqi Security Forces, Federal Police, Popular Mobilisation Forces, and some 
units of Kurdistan Regional Government Asayish internal security services, reportedly acted 
with impunity, arresting suspects without any guarantees.54  

During  a  visit  held  in  Baghdad  in  August  2023,  the  United  Nations  High  Commissioner  for 
Human Rights raised concerns about the increasing restriction of civic space, calling on the Iraqi 
government to protect journalists, activists and human rights defenders from intimidation and 
interference.55 As of February 2024, it is reported that Iran-backed militias targeted ‘unarmed 
activists’ and anti-corruption commentators.56 

Online activists 

According to Michael Knights, since the 2019 Tishreen October protests’ movement, the Iraqi 
government and the PMF, focused on the control of online communities.57 In January 2023, the 
Ministry of the Interior launched an online platform called ‘Ballegh’ to enable the public to submit 
complaints over so-called ‘derogatory or degrading’ online content.58 The Ministry’s decision is 
based  on  Article  40359  of  the  Iraqi  Penal  Code.60    In  the  same  month,  the  Iraqi  government 
established a Committee to punish individuals being reported through such a platform.61 See 
also 1.6 Individuals perceived as transgressing moral and religious norms. As of July 2023, the 

50 AI, Report 2022/23; The State of the World's Human Rights; Iraq 2022, 27 March 2023, url; Australia, DFAT, 
Country Information Report: Iraq, 16 January 2023, url, p. 26; USDOS, 2022 Country Report on Human Rights 
Practices: Iraq, 20 March 2023, url, p. 13 
51 HRW, Iraq: Security Forces Open Fire on Kirkuk Protesters, 8 September 2023, url 
52 Freedom House, Freedom in the World 2023 – Iraq (covering facts of 2022), 2023, url 
53 AI, Report 2022/23; The State of the World's Human Rights; Iraq 2022, 27 March 2023, url 
54 USDOS, 2022 Country Report on Human Rights Practices: Iraq, 20 March 2023, url, pp. 3, 7, 11, 12 
55 UNSC, Implementation of Resolution 2682 (2023): Report of the Secretary-General, S/2023/700, 26 September 
2023, url, para. 54 
56 Al Kaabi A., Knights M., Iraq's "Resistance" Factions Shift to Major Crackdown on Media Spaces, Washington 
Institute for Near East Policy, 28 February 2024, url 
57 Knights M. et al., Iraq’s New Regime Change: How Tehran-Backed Terrorist Organizations and Militias Captured 
the Iraqi State in: CTC December 2023, Volume 16, Issue 11, url 
58 UNSC, Implementation of Resolution 2631 (2022): Report of the Secretary-General, S/2023/340, 11  
May 2023, url, para. 54; SMEX, Iraq’s Controversial “Ballegh” Platform for “Combating Indecent Content”, 15  
February 2023, url; Freedom House, Freedom on the Net; Iraq, 4 October 2023, url 
59 Article 403 reads: ‘Any person who produces, imports, publishes, possesses, obtains or translates a book, 
printed or other written material, drawing, picture, film, symbol or other thing that violates the public integrity or 
decency with intent to exploit or distribute such material is punishable by a period of detention not exceeding 2 
years plus a fine not exceeding 200 dinars or by one of those penalties. The same penalty applies to any person 
who advertises such material or displays it in public or sells, hires or offers it for sale or hire even though it is not in 
public or to any person who distributes or submits it for distribution by any means. If the offence is committed with 
intent to deprave, it is considered to be an aggravating circumstances.’ Iraq, Iraqi Penal Code (Law No. 111 of 1969), 
1969, url, Art. 403 
60 SMEX, Iraq’s Controversial “Ballegh” Platform for “Combating Indecent Content”, 15 February 2023, url 
61 Shafaq News, Iraqi Interior Ministry imposes restrictions on social media users, 14 February 2023, url; SMEX,  
Iraq’s Controversial “Ballegh” Platform for “Combating Indecent Content”, 15 February 2023, url; AI, Iraq: 
Government must match rhetoric on human rights with meaningful action, 15 March 2023, url 

17 

EUROPEAN UNION AGENCY FOR ASYLUM 

head of the Committee declared to have received more than 150 000 complaints. Of those, 14 
people were charged for publishing ‘indecent’ or ‘immoral’ content on social media.62 

The definition of ‘indecent content’ drew criticism among civil society activists who highlighted 
the unclarity of the term, thus exposing activists posting online to arbitrary arrests63 and self-
censorship.64  Between  May  and  September  2023,  UNAMI  acknowledged  the  issue  of  self-
censorship  in  social  media  and  held  talks  with  judiciary  authorities  about  charges  against 
journalists and civil society activists.65 

Sarah Sanbar, Iraq researcher at Human Rights Watch, informed EUAA that the Ballegh platform 
was taken down a few months after its launch and it remained locked at the time of finalising 
this  report.66  The  monitoring  campaign  does  not  appear  to  be  implemented  in  a  systematic 
way.67 In an interview with SMEX, a non-profit organisation advocating for human rights in digital 
space, Hayder Hamzoz,  the executive director of the Iraqi Network for Social Media (INSM), 
reported  that  the  purpose  of  the  Ballegh  Platform  is  ‘to  instil  fear  in  bloggers  criticising  the 
constant  political  failures  in  Iraq’.68Judicial  authorities  expressed  support  to  the  Ministry  of 
Interior  for  such  initiative  through  a  letter  issued  by  the  Supreme  Judicial  Council  calling  all 
courts and departments of the judiciary to prosecute individuals for ‘insulting state institutions’.69 

October 2019 Tishreen movement 

In early October 2019, mass protests -commonly referred as Tishreen movement- erupted in 
multiple  governorates  across  Iraq  demanding  systemic  political  reforms.70  Protests  were 
reportedly  met  with  use  of  excessive  force  by  security  forces,  resulting  in  death,  injuries,71 
extrajudicial killings and enforced disappearances.72 

In its Concluding observations on the second periodic report of Iraq, published in June 2022, 
UN CAT highlighted that only a small number of prosecutions have been undertaken to 
address the allegations of the excessive use of force, both by security forces and by 
unidentified armed actors, occurred during October 2019 Tishreen movement.73 Legal 
accountability for the killing and disappearance of hundreds of protesters, including for the 
high-profile ones, had not been achieved.74 

62 New York Times (The), As Iraq Tries to Chill Critics, Its Newest Target Is Social Media, 16 July 2023, url 
63 Mansour R., Tackling Iraq’s unaccountable state in Chatham House, 11 December 2023, url; UNSC, 
Implementation of Resolution 2631 (2022): Report of the Secretary-General, S/2023/340, 11 May 2023, url, para. 54; 
64 UNSC, Implementation of Resolution 2631 (2022): Report of the Secretary-General, S/2023/340, 11 May 2023, url, 
para. 54; AI, Iraq: Joint statement: Iraqi authorities must cease chilling crackdown  
on free speech, 3 March 2023, url
65 UNSC, Implementation of Resolution 2682 (2023): Report of the Secretary-General, S/2023/700, 26 September 
2023, url, para. 57 
66 Sanbar S., email communication with EUAA, 16 March 2024 
67 Sanbar S., email communication with EUAA, 16 March 2024 
68 SMEX, Iraq’s Controversial “Ballegh” Platform for “Combating Indecent Content”, 15 February 2023, url 
69 Al Jazeera, The long shadow of Saddam’s dictatorship in Iraq, 16 April 2023, url; Chatham House, Tackling Iraq’s 
unaccountable state, 11 December 2023, url 
70 EPIC, The Long Game: Iraq’s “Tishreen” Movement and the Struggle for Reform, October 2021, url 
71 HRW, Four Years On, Peaceful Iraqi Protesters Remain Missing, 2 October 2023, url 
72 AI, Iraq: Four years after Tishreen protests, no justice for state and militia violence, 27 September 2023, url 
73 UN CAT, Concluding observations on the second periodic report of Iraq*, 15 June 2022, url, para. 32 
74 HRW, World Report 2024, Annual report on the human rights situation in 2023, 11 January 2024, url 

18 

IRAQ – COUNTRY FOCUS 

GCHR reported that, in October 2022, security forces searched the home of activists in the 
governorates of Baghdad, Babil, Najaf, Thi-Qar and Basrah, days before the demonstrations 
aimed to commemorate the October 2019 Tishreen movement, to prevent them from 
participating in the demonstrations.75 On 1 October 2023, security forces dispersed the 
demonstration for the commemoration of the fourth anniversary of the October 2019 protests. 
GCHR reported on the killing of a prominent activist on 14 October 2023 who took part in the 
October 2019 protests.76 For more information on the Tishreen movement, see EUAA COI Iraq 
Security Situation Report – January 2022. 

1.1.2. 

Journalists and media workers 

Reporters sans frontières (RSF) ranked Iraq 167th out of 180 countries in its World Press 
Freedom Index 2023,77 due ‘in particular to the large number of journalists who are missing or 
held hostage’.78 Anti-defamation crimes included in the Penal Code are often used to threaten, 
punish and intimidate journalists and internet users79 and a ‘considerable’ number of Iraqi 
journalists faced legal proceedings.80 Vaguely worded laws have been used to target and 
silence journalists, activists, and rival politicians, including in the KRI.81 Human Rights Watch 
researcher Sarah Sanbar said that journalists or those with large social media followers 
perceived to ‘insult’ Iraqi or Kurdish authorities continue to face ‘serious repercussions, 
including arrest, harassment, kidnapping, arbitrary detention, and death threats, from both 
state and non-state actors.’82 Journalists and online media outlets writing on corruption were 
particularly targeted, including with cyberattacks.83 

In the KRI it included arbitrary arrests, prosecution and imprisonment of journalists,84 especially 
local85 and independent reporters.86 In August 2022, dozens of journalists and activists were 
arrested prior to a planned protest aimed at expressing grievances towards the KRG,87 against 

75 GCHR, GCHR’s 25th Periodic Report on Human Rights Violations in Iraq, 16 December 2022, url 
76 GCHR, GCHR’s 30th Periodic Report on Human Rights Violations in Iraq, 9 November 2023, url 
77 RSF, 2023 World Press Freedom Index, url 
78 RSF, 2023 World Press Freedom Index – journalism threatened by fake content industry, url  
79 Freedom House, Freedom in the World 2023 – Iraq (covering facts of 2022), 2023, url; UN Iraq, Press release, 
International Day to End Impunity for Crimes against Journalists, 2 November 2022, url; AI, Report 2022/23; The 
State of the World's Human Rights; Iraq 2022, 27 March 2023, url; UNDP, Media landscape in Iraq, 5 February 
2024, url, p. 24; CPJ, Iraqi Kurdish journalist Omed Baroshky charged with defamation over Facebook post, 28 
February 2024, url 
80 IOHR, Press freedom in Iraq: two decades of bloodshed and impunity; 3 May 2023, url 
81 SMEX, Iraq’s Controversial “Ballegh” Platform for “Combating Indecent Content”, 15 February 2023, url, Freedom 
House, Freedom on the Net: Iraq, 4 October 2023, url ; Freedom House, Freedom in the World 2023 – Iraq 
(covering facts of 2022), 2023, url 
82 Sanbar S., email communication with EUAA, 16 March 2024 
83 Freedom House, Freedom in the World 2023 – Iraq (covering facts of 2022), 2023, url 
84 AI, Report 2022/23; The State of the World's Human Rights; Iraq 2022, 27 March 2023, url; AI, Journalist 
Released After Three Years’ Imprisonment; Outcome UA: 28/21 [MDE 14/7732/2024], 26 February 2024, url  
85 Freedom House, Freedom in the World 2023 – Iraq (covering facts of 2022), 2023, url; Marif D., Barzani's  
Failures on Freedom of Expression in Iraqi Kurdistan in: Washington Institute for Near East Policy, 24 August 2022,  
url 
86 Columbia Journalism Review, ‘A kind of hell for journalists’, 6 April 2022, url 
87 HRW, World Report 2023, Iraq, url 

19 

EUROPEAN UNION AGENCY FOR ASYLUM 

corruption, poverty and unemployment.88 In some cases, journalists in the KRI were detained 
with accusations of espionage.89 

RSF observed that many journalists in Iraq were subjected to constant threats since the 
October 2019 Tishreen movement.90 In its report covering the period from May 2022 until May 
2023, the Iraqi Observatory for Human Rights (IOHR) noted that journalists are obliged to work 
in a dangerous environment, them being ‘a common target for all conflicting parties in Iraq’.91 

Self-censorship is said to be widely spread in Iraq and in the KRI due to the risk of criminal 
penalties, retaliation by government authorities, political parties, and armed groups.92 
Freedom House observed that in the period between June 2022 and May 2023, authorities 
launched ‘a crackdown on social media users’, restricting internet freedom in both Federal 
Iraq and the KRI. Security forces arrested some internet users for their online content, 
including journalists, activists, and social media users who were targeted and physically 
assaulted.93 These violations, which have created an environment of fear, have forced many 
Iraqi citizens to self-censor,94 and others, particularly reporters, to leave the country.95 
Journalists are also led to self-censor due to death threats and abduction, targeting also less 
prominent journalists.96 In an interview with Chatham House, an Iraqi journalist reported to 
have been advised by human rights defenders to ‘spend most of his time’ in the KRI or to stay 
under cover when in Baghdad due to his critical articles about armed groups. The journalist 
also added that many colleagues fear criticising armed groups in their reporting.97 Female 
journalists are particularly subject to discrimination, harassment and extortion, especially those 
working on controversial issues for independent media.98 

IOHR noted that, during clashes in Baghdad in August 2022 among the Al-Sadr affiliated 
Peace Brigades (also called Saraya Al-Salam), members of the PMF, and armed groups 
affiliated with other political parties - journalists considered as  ‘enemies’ were directly 
targeted by all the conflicting parties.99 During the protest that took place in July 2023 in 
Baghdad in front of the Swedish Embassy, several journalists were arrested by security 
forces.100 Human Rights Watch also reported cases of shooting by security forces against 
reporters during protests in Kirkuk.101 

88 HRW, Kurdistan Region of Iraq: Arrests to Deter Protest, 28 August 2022, url 
89 RSF, Iraq, accessed 12 March 2024, url 
90 RSF, Iraq, 2022, accessed 12 March 2024, url 
91 IOHR, Press freedom in Iraq: two decades of bloodshed and impunity, 3 May 2023, url 
92 Freedom House, Report on digital media and internet freedom (reporting period June 2022 - May 2023), 4  
October 2023, url 
93 Freedom House, Freedom on the Net 2023, Iraq, 4 October 2023, url 
94 Freedom House, Freedom on the Net 2023, Iraq, 4 October 2023, url; UNSC, Implementation of  
Resolution 2682 (2023): Report of the Secretary-General, S/2023/700, 26 September 2023, url, para. 57 
95 Freedom House, Freedom on the Net 2023, Iraq, 4 October 2023, url 
96 RSF, Iraq, accessed 17 March 2024, url 
97 Mansour R., Tackling Iraq’s unaccountable state in: Chatham House, 11 December 2023, url 
98 UNDP, Media landscape in Iraq, 5 February 2024, url, pp. 20-21 
99 IOHR, Press freedom in Iraq: two decades of bloodshed and impunity, 3 May 2023, url 
100 CNN, Protesters storm Swedish embassy in Iraq over Quran burning plan, 20 July 2023, url 
101 HRW, World Report 2024 Iraq, 11 January 2024, url; HRW, Iraq: Security Forces Open Fire on Kirkuk Protesters, 8 
September 2023, url 

20 

IRAQ – COUNTRY FOCUS 

Violent repression of protesters and arrests of journalists covering protests continued in 
2023102 as reporters were in some cases physically assaulted and detained for covering 
demonstrations or other events.103 As the media are particularly intertwined with politics in 
both Federal Iraq and in KRI,104 employees of media outlets are also targeted based on the 
political affiliation of their employers.105 Some media outlets have been subjected to politically 
motivated attacks106 and programmes have been suspended if perceived to be critical of 
authorities.107  

Freedom House reported that ‘militias frequently shoot, kidnap, torture, and assassinate 
journalists for their work.’ The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) did not record any 
murder of journalists in Iraq within the reference period of this report.108 RSF highlighted that 
the killing of journalists remains unpunished.109 The weak response of the state is considered 
as a contributing factor to the rise of violence against journalists.110 

1.1.3. 

Individuals with (perceived) affiliation to ISIL 

Perceived affiliation to ISIL is mainly driven by family connections through a relative, even a 
distant family member,111 actively involved with ISIL. The so-called ‘ISIL-families’112 is a broad 
definition including: persons with no connection to  ISIL;113 a minority of persons ideologically 
attached to the group; ISIL-affiliated families returning to their original communities who 
undergo a reintegration process.114 Identification of ISIL affiliation has been based on the mere 
suspicion about a relative being an ISIL supporter, in absence of any evidence115 or any formal 
charges.116 Perceived ISIL affiliation encompasses also first and second degree relatives, even 
up to the fourth-degree in some communities,117 including children cleared of any involvement 

102 HRW, World Report 2024 Iraq, 11 January 2024, url 
103 UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, IRAQ - International Day to End Impunity for Crimes against  
Journalists, 2 November 2022, Press release, url  
104 RSF, Iraq, accessed 17 March 2024, url  
105 USDOS, 2022 Country Report on Human Rights Practices: Iraq, 20 March 2023, url, p. 28 7 
106 UN Iraq, Press release, International Day to End Impunity for Crimes against Journalists, 2 November 2022, url;  
Freedom House, Freedom on the Net, 4 October 2023, url 
107 UN Iraq, Press release, International Day to End Impunity for Crimes against Journalists, 2 November 2022, url 
108 CPJ, Explore CPJ’s database of attacks on the press – Iraq, n.d., (filtered by dates from 2022 to 2024), url 
109 RSF, Iraq, accessed 17 March 2024, url 
110 IOHR, Press freedom in Iraq: two decades of bloodshed and impunity; 3 May 2023, url 
111 UNDP, Challenges for the Return and Reintegration of Women and Children, October 2022, url, p. 16 
112 HRW, Iraq’s So-Called “ISIS Families”: Rounded up, Vilified, Forgotten, 14 November 2018, url; for additional  
information on the categorisation of so called ‘ISIL families’ see New Lines (The), ISIS in Iraq: The Challenge of 
Reintegrating ‘ISIS Families’, 7 July 2020, url 
113 Peacemakers Network, Iraq after the Territorial Defeat of Islamic State, March 2023, url, p. 23 
114 Cook, J., Distinguishing Children From ISIS-Affiliated Families in Iraq and Their Unique Barriers for Rehabilitation 
and Reintegration in: Perspectives on Terrorism, Volume XVII, Issue 3, September 2023, url, p. 51 
115 UNDP, Challenges for the Return and Reintegration of Women and Children, October 2022, url, p. 16 
116 Cook, J., Distinguishing Children From ISIS-Affiliated Families in Iraq and Their Unique Barriers for Rehabilitation 
and Reintegration in: Perspectives on Terrorism, Volume XVII, Issue 3, September 2023, url, p. 51 
117 World Bank, Local Peace Agreements and the Return of IDPs with Perceived ISIL Affiliation in Iraq, January  
2022, url, p. 5., see also, UN Women, Zainab Qassim, an Iraqi Woman Mediator who Helped Reintegrate Families  
Accused of ISIS Affiliation into their Home Communities, 24 October 2022, url 

21 

EUROPEAN UNION AGENCY FOR ASYLUM 

in ISIL crimes.118 Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) within Iraq and families returning from Al 
Hol camp in Syria have been perceived as ISIL’s affiliated.119  

Since 2016, Iraqi civil and security apparatuses have reportedly targeted thousands of 
individuals with perceived affiliation to ISIL, leading to what has been referred by Amnesty 
International (AI) and United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) as a ‘collective 
punishment’ in various ways.120 For example, individuals with perceived affiliation to ISIL were 
reportedly prevented from accessing civil documents necessary to access basic services and 
were restricted their freedom of movement.121 Lack of acceptance by community, 
stigmatisation, violence and a heightened risk of revenge attacks were reported.122 
Government discriminatory practices and social stigma are considered among the root causes 
which hindered the possibility for individuals perceived to be affiliated to ISIL to reintegrate 
into society.123  

Based on a focus group conducted in December 2022 by Action against Hunger in five 
districts in Ninewa, Sunnis reported being singled out for discrimination for being perceived as 
ISIL supporters in Tel Afar.124 Families from Sunni-majority areas are reported to fear being 
‘collectively stigmatized’.125 Sunnis who lived in areas under ISIL’s rule have been accused of 
ISIL’s affiliation by PMF, irrespective of their degree of involvement with the group. In Tel Afar, 
PMF harassed Sunnis perceived to be affiliated to ISIL at checkpoints.126 The suspicion of 
being  ISIL-affiliated by both security actors and by the communities127 might increase for a 
Sunni who did not return to the place of origin for a long period of time following the liberation 
of ISIL from those territories.128 Cases of abuses and torture by both Security forces and PMF 
were reported during arrests and pre-trial detention, especially targeting Sunni Arabs.129 

118 Cook, J., Distinguishing Children From ISIS-Affiliated Families in Iraq and Their  
Unique Barriers for Rehabilitation and Reintegration in: Perspectives on Terrorism, Volume XVII, Issue 3, September 
2023, url, p. 52 
119 United Nations University, UNIDIR, Rehabilitation and Reintegration of Children from Families with Perceived ISIL 
Affiliation: Experiences from Iraq and Al Hol, November 2022, url, p. 7: More information on the definition and 
characteristic of the so-called ISIL families can be found at: New Lines Institute (The), ISIS in Iraq: The Challenge of 
Reintegrating ‘ISIS Families’, 7 July 2020, url 
120 AI, Report 2022/23; The State of the World's Human Rights; Iraq 2022, 27 March 2023, url; UNDP, Challenges  
for the Return and Reintegration of Women and Children, October 2022, url, pp. 16, 27 
121 AI, Report 2022/23; The State of the World's Human Rights; Iraq 2022, 27 March 2023, url 
122 Parry J. et al., in: UNIDIR, Coming Home: The Return and Reintegration of Families with Perceived ISIL Affiliation 
in Iraq, MEAC Findings Report, April 2023, url, p. 7; Cook, J., Distinguishing Children From ISIS-Affiliated Families in 
Iraq and Their Unique Barriers for Rehabilitation and Reintegration in: Perspectives on Terrorism, Volume XVII, 
Issue 3, September 2023, url, p. 52; Al Monitor, Life after al-Hol: Iraqi women’s uneasy return from ranks of ISIS, 10 
February 2024, url; RFI, Country Overview Iraq, March 2023, url, p. 4; 
123 War on the Rocks, Living In The Shadows: Iraq’s Remaining Displaced Families, 3 February 2022, url 
124 Action Against Hunger, Drivers of Conflict and Community Tensions in Post-War Iraq, 5 May 2023, url, p. 12 
125 Peacemakers Network, Iraq after the Territorial Defeat of Islamic State, March 2023, url, p. 23 
126 Ceasefire Centre for Civilian Rights, ‘They Are in Control’: The rise of paramilitary forces and the security of 
minorities in Iraq’s disputed Territories, January 2022, url, p. 28 
127 IOM, Reimagining Reintegration, an Analysis of Sustainable Returns after Conflict, 30 March 2023, url, p.8; 
UNDP, Affiliated with ISIS, October 2022, url, p. 1; Ceasefire Centre for Civilian Rights, ‘They Are in Control’: The 
rise of paramilitary forces and the security of minorities in Iraq’s disputed Territories, January 2022, url, p. 28 
128 Ceasefire Centre for Civilian Rights, ‘They Are in Control’: The rise of paramilitary forces and the security of  
minorities in Iraq’s disputed Territories, January 2022, url, p. 28 
129 USDOS, 2022 Country Report on Human Rights Practices: Iraq, 20 March 2023, url, p. 7 

22 

 
IRAQ – COUNTRY FOCUS 

Saddam Hussein’s tribe, named Albu Nasir, is also reported to face marginalisation due to 
perceived affiliation to ISIL.130 See also 1.2.1 Sunni. 

Data regarding the number of individuals with perceived affiliation to ISIL in Iraq vary 
according to sources. Estimates range from 250 000131 to 300 000.132 In 2019, the Iraqi 
Ministry of Interior announced its plan to detain up to 280 000 people with alleged ISIL’s 
affiliation,133 most of whom were women and children.134 In an article published by The New 
Lines in July 2020, it is reported that Iraqi authorities estimated 300 000 individuals with 
family connections to ISIL to be living in camps across ten governorates in Iraq.135  According 
to the US Central Command (CENTCOM), as of December 2022, there were more than 20 
000 ISIL leaders and fighters in detention in Iraq.136  

ISIL’ suspects are charged under the Iraqi Anti-Terrorism Law No. 13 of 2005 in Federal Iraq137 
and under the Anti-Terror Law No. 3 of 2006 in the KRI.138 Individuals accused or suspected to 
have supported ISIL are registered in a government database with limited possibility for them 
to appeal.139 The framework for prosecution under the Anti-Terrorism Law is deemed as 
‘exceptionally broad’,140 both in Federal Iraq and in the KRI.141 Such a legislation is reportedly 
used as a ‘pretext’ to unlawfully detain Sunni Arabs, including suspects of affiliation to ISIL,142 
especially in Sunni majority governorates such as Anbar, Salah al-Din, Kirkuk, and Ninewa,143 
as well as to suppress Sunni protests and detain young Sunni men.144 Arrests conducted under 
the Anti-Terrorism Law tend to be carried out without warrants, which are usually been issued 
only after the arrest.145 In trial procedures, defendants can be found guilty based on 
geographical origins.146 Forced confessions are often used as the only evidence in anti-

130 Guardian (The), Rifts remain in Saddam Hussein’s Iraq home town 20 years after his fall, 14 March 2023, url 
131 USDOS, 2022 Country Report on Human Rights Practices: Iraq, 20 March 2023, url, p. 40 
132 New Lines (The), ISIS in Iraq: The Challenge of Reintegrating ‘ISIS Families’, 7 July 2020, url  
133 HRW, Iraq: Confining Families With Alleged ISIS Ties Unlawful, 7 May 2019, url  
134 UNDP, Affiliated with ISIS, October 2022, url, pp. 14, 16 ; Cook, J., Distinguishing Children From ISIS-Affiliated 
Families in Iraq and Their Unique Barriers for Rehabilitation and Reintegration in: Perspectives on Terrorism, 
Volume XVII, Issue 3, September 2023, url, pp. 43, 51 
135 New Lines (The), ISIS in Iraq: The Challenge of Reintegrating ‘ISIS Families’, 7 July 2020, url  
136 Cook, J., Distinguishing Children From ISIS-Affiliated Families in Iraq and Their Unique Barriers for Rehabilitation 
and Reintegration in: Perspectives on Terrorism, Volume XVII, Issue 3, September 2023, url, p. 43; US Central 
Command, Centcom – Year in Review 2022: The Fight against Isis, 29 December 2022, url 
137 HRW, Human Rights Watch Submission to the UN Human Rights Committee in Advance of its Review of Iraq, 25 
January 2022, url 
138 UNAMI and OHCHR, Human Rights in the Administration of Justice in Iraq: Trials under the anti-terrorism laws 
and implications for justice, accountability and social cohesion in the aftermath of ISIL, January 2020, url, p. 4 
139 War on the Rocks, Living In The Shadows: Iraq’s Remaining Displaced Families, 3 February 2022, url  
140 Parry J. et al., in: UNIDIR, Coming Home: The Return and Reintegration of Families with Perceived ISIL Affiliation 
in Iraq, MEAC Findings Report, April 2023, url, pp. 7-8; US Central Command, Centcom – Year in Review 2022: The 
Fight against Isis, 29 December 2022, url 
141 UNAMI and OHCHR, Human Rights in the Administration of Justice in Iraq: Trials under the anti-terrorism laws  
and implications for justice, accountability and social cohesion in the aftermath of ISIL, January 2020, url, p. 5 
142 USDOS, 2022 Report on International Religious Freedom: Iraq, 15 May 2023, url, p. 12 
143 ACLED, Coding Religious Repression and Disorder: Outcomes and Critical Reflections from the ACLED-Religion  
Pilot Project, 28 April 2022, url 
144 USDOS, 2022 Report on International Religious Freedom: Iraq, 15 May 2023, url, p. 12 
145 MENA Rights Group, Alternative report submitted in the context of the review of Iraq’s second period report  
(confidential), 16 March 2022, url, p. 13 
146 USDOS, 2022 Country Report on Human Rights Practices: Iraq, 20 March 2023, url, p. 15 

23 

 
 
EUROPEAN UNION AGENCY FOR ASYLUM 

terrorism trials by courts.147 Human Rights Watch observed that most of the roughly 8 000 
prisoners who are on death row, are charged with terrorism crimes.148 In 2023, UNAMI 
documented 29 executions. Additionally, the President of Iraq approved the order to execute 
another 275 individuals.149 However, no information on the profile of the individuals who were 
executed or ordered to be executed was provided by the sources consulted in this report. 
Cases of forced disappearance of suspected ISIL fighters were also reported.150  

In Federal Iraq and in the KRI, boys were, inter alia, subjected to proceedings for being 
accused of ISIL affiliation. As of March 2023, AI documented the cases of over 200 Iraqi boys 
accused of affiliation to ISIL being detained in Baghdad after their transfer from northern Syria, 
without any charge or trial.151 For more information see 1.4.2 Children with perceived affiliation 
to ISIL. 

Treatment of family members 

Exact figures on the numbers of families with perceived ISIL affiliation are difficult to estimate 
as this information is not recorded by humanitarian agencies and due the complexity of the 
definition of 'ISIL-affiliated’ itself.152 Involvement of one family member in ISIL’s activities could 
reportedly have an impact on every family member, including in cases where support to the 
organisation was forced or in cases where accused individuals had no connection with ISIL.153 
In cases when one family member is accused to have sided with ISIL, this would lead to what 
has been defined as a ‘collective punishment’, where all the family would be ‘shunned’, 
resulting in displacement of thousands of people in underdeveloped areas without 
assistance.154  

USDOS reported that family members of ISIL suspects, notably Sunni Arabs, have been 
arbitrarily detained to induce absconding family members to show up to the ‘authorities’. 
Additionally, the same source stated that relatives of ISIL suspects have been subjected to 
movement restrictions, especially in formerly ISIL-controlled areas such as Anbar, Dohuk, 
Kirkuk, Ninewa, and Salah al-Din governorates.155 While ISIL fighters are prosecuted under the 
state legal system,156 families with perceived ISIL affiliation are required to undergo a 
combination of different justice mechanisms: intelligence, tribal, and state justice.157 In 

147 HRW, Iraq: Unlawful Mass Executions Resume, 24 January 2024, url; MENA Rights Group, Alternative report 
submitted in the context of the review of Iraq’s second period report (confidential), 16 March 2022, url, p. 16; 
USDOS, 2022 Country Report on Human Rights Practices: Iraq, 20 March 2023, url, p. 6 
148 HRW, Iraq: Unlawful Mass Executions Resume, 24 January 2024, url  
149 UNSC, Implementation of resolution 2682 (2023), Report of the Secretary-General, 25 January  
2024, url, para.60 
150 Freedom in the World 2023 Iraq, 13 April 2023, url; USDOS, 2022 Report on International Religious Freedom:  
Iraq, 15 May 2023, url p. 11 
151 AI, Report 2022/23; The State of the World's Human Rights; Iraq 2022, 27 March 2023, url 
152 Parry J. et al., in: UNIDIR, Coming Home: The Return and Reintegration of Families with Perceived ISIL Affiliation 
in Iraq, MEAC Findings Report, April 2023, url, p. 8 
153 Peacemakers Network, Iraq after the Territorial Defeat of Islamic State, March 2023, url, p. 23; War on the Rocks,  
Living In The Shadows: Iraq’s Remaining Displaced Families, 3 February 2022, url 
154 War on the Rocks, Living In The Shadows: Iraq’s Remaining Displaced Families, 3 February 2022, url  
155 USDOS, 2022 Country Report on Human Rights Practices: Iraq, 20 March 2023, url, pp. 19, 39, 40 
156 Thiefaine. C., Iraqi Tribal Justice Put to the Test as Islamic State Families Return, 19 February 2021, url 
157 Bobseine, H., comments during external expert review of the report, 03 April 2023 originally cited in EUAA, COI  
Report, Iraq: Arab tribes and customary law, April 2023, url, p. 58 

24 

 
IRAQ – COUNTRY FOCUS 

communities where a Local Peace Agreement (LPA) was signed, security clearance is applied 
to the whole family, resulting in the denial of clearance to wife and children in case when the 
head of household would have failed the vetting process.158 At times, in trial procedures, 
defendants are reported to be found guilty based on family ties to another defendant.159  

Return of persons with perceived affiliation to ISIL 

Return to communities of origin of individuals with perceived affiliation to ISIL can be 
hampered by security actors160 and by local communities.161 In the KRI, return of Arab families 
who fled in 2014 during the conflict with ISIL to villages bordering Syria is prevented by 
Kurdish authorities.162 See 2.3.1. Entry, residency requirements and access to civil 
documentation and services  

Individuals displaced during ISIL conflict are required by the Iraqi government to undergo an 
administrative process to return to their communities. The process, which varies across 
governorates, sometimes163 includes a security clearance issued by security and political 
actors. Individuals with perceived affiliation to ISIL are required to undergo tabriya,164 a tribal 
procedure aimed to publicly disavow male family members to be accepted into a community 
and access civil documentation.165 Ikhbar, a tribal procedure aimed at reporting a relative with 
perceived affiliation to ISIS, may be also requested. Resorting to tabriya or ikhbar can allow 
access to documents such as the Housing Card. Nonetheless, having gone through tabriya or 
ikhbar can be perceived by some actors as a confirmation of affiliation to ‘extremist groups’.166 

For more information on tribal aspects related to the treatment of persons with perceived 
affiliation to ISIL, see the EUAA COI Iraq: Arab tribes and customary law Report, April 2023. 

158 WBG, Local Peace Agreements and the Return of IDPs with Perceived ISIL Affiliation in Iraq, January 2022, url, 
p. 25
159 USDOS, 2022 Country Report on Human Rights Practices: Iraq, 20 March 2023, url, p. 15
160 USDOS, 2022 Report on International Religious Freedom: Iraq, 15 May 2023, url, p. 12; Parry J. et al., in: UNIDIR,
Coming Home: The Return and Reintegration of Families with Perceived ISIL Affiliation in Iraq, MEAC Findings
Report, April 2023, url, p. 10; Al Monitor, Life after al-Hol: Iraqi women’s uneasy return from ranks of ISIS, 10
February 2024, url; UN Iraq, Iraq Common Country Analysis 2023, January 2024, p. 62, cited by UNHCR,
International Protection Considerations with Regards to People Fleeing Iraq, 30 January 2024, url, p. 110,
footnote 806
161 UNDP, Affiliated with ISIS, October 2022, url, pp. 17-18
162 Freedom House, Freedom in the World 2023 – Iraq (covering facts of 2022), 2023, url
163 Parry J. et al., in: UNIDIR, Coming Home: The Return and Reintegration of Families with Perceived ISIL Affiliation
in Iraq, MEAC Findings Report, April 2023, url, p. 10; DRC/NRC, Life in the margins: Re-examining the needs of
paperless people in post-conflict Iraq, url, p. 43; UNDP, Pathways to Reintegration: IRAQ Families Formerly
Associated with ISI, February 2021, url, p. 16
164 War on the Rocks, Living In The Shadows: Iraq’s Remaining Displaced Families, 3 February 2022, url
165 J. Cook, Distinguishing Children from ISIS-Affiliated Families in Iraq and their Unique Barriers for Rehabilitation
and Reintegration, September 2023, url , p. 54; Parry J. et al., in: UNIDIR, Coming Home: The
Return and Reintegration of Families with Perceived ISIL Affiliation in Iraq, MEAC Findings Report, April 2023, url,
p. 11; DRC/NRC, Life in the margins: Re-examining the needs of paperless people in post-conflict Iraq, url, p. 19;
UNDP, Pathways to Reintegration: IRAQ Families Formerly Associated with ISI, February 2021, url, p. 19
166 DRC/NRC, Life in the margins: Re-examining the needs of paperless people in post-conflict Iraq, url, p. 19

25 

EUROPEAN UNION AGENCY FOR ASYLUM 

Civil documentation and security clearance 

Return of IDPs to their communities of origin is hindered by lack of civil documentation and by 
the required security clearance to access offices issuing such documents.167 In March 2021, 
the Iraqi Court of Cassation established that women with perceived ISIL affiliation are required 
by the Iraqi government to provide evidence of a death certificate or detention of the father of 
the child. Since many men disappeared or died during conflict, such a requirement is 
reportedly ‘impossible’ to obtain.  In March 2022, courts across Iraq, following a request from 
the Forensics Department of the Ministry of Health in Baghdad,  started to require DNA 
samples from up to three male paternal relatives to obtain a birth certificate or other civil 
documents for children. Such a process is reportedly lengthy and complex. In July of 2022, 
the High Judicial Council, the judicial advisory panel which oversees the Iraqi judiciary, 
confirmed the requirement of multiple DNA tests and re-affirmed that, for women with foreign 
ISIL-affiliated spouses, birth registration of children is impossible. In light of the above, access 
to civil documentation is reportedly available only for a limited minority of families with 
perceived affiliation to ISIL.168 

Since 2014, individuals suspected to be affiliated with ISIL have been registered by Iraqi 
security actors in a database which included also first-degree relatives. To be removed by the 
database, a security clearance is needed. Security clearance, which is a prerequisite to access 
civil documentation and freedom of movement,169 is difficult to obtain also due to lack of civil 
documentation needed to prove the identity of individuals undergoing such a procedure. The 
process to obtain security clearance is deemed as ‘inconsistent and opaque’, thus creating 
opportunity for corruption and abuses of power, including sexual abuse and extortion, 
smuggling and trafficking.170 Security clearance is often denied by the authorities for IDPs with 
perceived affiliation to ISIL.171 For what concerns the return of the so-called ‘ISIL families’ from 
Al Hol camp in Syria, this is further complicated due to the additional prerequisite of 
sponsorship by a trusted community member, usually a relative or a tribal leader.172 (See 2.1.2. 
Entry, residency requirements and access to civil documentation and services). 

As reported by various NGOs and USDOS, after ISIL’s defeat, the PMF prevented the return of 
residents to their homes, including Sunni Arabs and other ethnic and religious minorities.173 
IDPs have continued to face stigmatisation, discrimination, harassment, revenge killings, and 
difficulty to obtain security clearances and accessing reconstruction funds.174 UNHCR noted 
that the lack of civil documentation by IDPs perceived to be affiliated to ISIL hampers their 

167 United Nations University, UNIDIR, The Road Home from Al Hol Camp: Reflections on the Iraqi Experience,  
MEAC Findings Report 2024, December 2022, url, pp. 32, 33; Al Monitor, Life after al-Hol: Iraqi women’s uneasy  
return from ranks of ISIS, 10 February 2024, url 
168 DRC/NRC, Life in the margins: Re-examining the needs of paperless people in post-conflict Iraq, url, p. 19 
169 DRC/NRC, Life in the margins: Re-examining the needs of paperless people in post-conflict Iraq, url, p. 19 
170 UNDP, Pathways to Reintegration: IRAQ Families Formerly Associated with ISIL, February 2021, url, p. 16 
171 USDOS, 2022 Country Report on Human Rights Practices: Iraq, 20 March 2023, url, p. 39 
172 United Nations University, UNIDIR, Rehabilitation and Reintegration of Children from Families with Perceived ISIL  
Affiliation: Experiences from Iraq and Al Hol, November 2022, url, p. 7 
173 USDOS, 2022 Country Report on Human Rights Practices: Iraq, 20 March 2023, url, pp. 29, 33, 34 
174 HRW, Interview with EUAA, 13 March 2023, originally cited in EUAA, COI Report, Iraq: Arab tribes and customary  
law, April 2023, url; USDOS, 2022 Country Report on Human Rights Practices: Iraq, 20 March 2023, url, p. 40 

26 

 
IRAQ – COUNTRY FOCUS 

access to basic services such as education, healthcare, and social security benefits, leading to 
restricted freedom of movement and increased risk of arrest.175  

Return to the community of origin is often rejected for families from Al Hol camp in Syria and 
IDPs with perceived links to ISIL, often being excluded and stigmatised by their 
communities,176 subjected to revenge attacks, violence177 and sexual assault.178 According to 
one interviewee by The Guardian in June 2023 living in Jeddah 1 camp,179 her tribe would not 
allow her return to her community of origin due to a relative’s connection with ISIL.180 Many so-
called ‘ISIL families’ cannot return to their home villages because of the application of tribal 
law, such as tabriya or diyya, a monetary compensation tribal mechanism aimed to settle 
crimes.181 At times, tribal leaders and mukhtar reportedly played a key role in encouraging 
community cohesion and acceptance towards families with perceived ISIL affiliation.182 Societal 
stigmatisation by communities from where IDPs originates have been intensified whenever an 
attack by ISIL occurs.183 Due to the inability to move freely, IDP households are reported to 
struggle to access livelihoods.184  

Since the launch of an extensive repatriation programme in 2021,185 the Iraqi government is 
speeding up the process for the return of individuals from Al Hol camp in North-East Syria.186 
Among these individuals there are 'wives and children of Islamic State fighters but also 
supporters of the militant group'.187 Returnees are temporarily accommodated in a 
‘rehabilitation centre’, in Jeddah 1,188 before being able to return to their areas of origin or 

175 UNHCR, Access to civil documentation IDPs and IDPs returnees in Iraq 2022-2023, 24 August 2022, url 
176 UNDP, Affiliated with ISIS: Challenges For The Return And Reintegration Of Women And  
Children, url, p. 68; IRC Protection Needs Overview: Monitoring and Trends (April 2023 – September 2023), 10  
December 2023, url, p. 6; UNSC, Conflict-related sexual violence Report of the Secretary-General, 22  
June 2023, url, para: 37 
177 Rehabilitation and Reintegration of Children from Families with Perceived ISIL Affiliation: Experiences from Iraq  
and Al Hol, url, p. 7 
178 Freedom House, Freedom in the World 2023 – Iraq (covering facts of 2022), 2023, url  
179 Jeddah 1 is designated by the Iraqi government as a ‘rehabilitation centre’ where returnees are temporarily  
accommodated before being able to return to their areas of origin or integration; see United Nations University, 
UNIDIR, The Road Home from Al Hol Camp: Reflections on the Iraqi Experience, MEAC Findings Report 2024, 
December 2022, url, pp. 7-8; New Humanitarian (The), In Iraq, a rushed camp closure fuels unease over the safety 
of IS returns, 24 August 2023, url ; Al Monitor, Life after al-Hol: Iraqi women’s uneasy return from ranks of ISIS, 10  
February 2024, url; UNDP, Affiliated with ISIS: Challenges for the Return And Reintegration of Women and Children,  
url, p. 36 
180 Guardian (The), The people don’t want us’: inside a camp for Iraqis returned from Syrian detention, 15 June  
2023, url 
181 Thiefaine. C., Iraqi Tribal Justice Put To The Test As Islamic State Families Return, 19 February 2021, url 
182 Perry J., et al., Coming Home: The Return and Reintegration of Families with Perceived ISIL Affiliation  
in Iraq, MEAC Findings Report, UNIDIR, April 2023, url, p. 14 
183 UNDP, Affiliated With Isis: Challenges For The Return And Reintegration Of Women And Children, url, p. 25 
184 United Nations University, UNIDIR, Rehabilitation and Reintegration of Children from Families with Perceived ISIL  
Affiliation: Experiences from Iraq and Al Hol, url, p. 7 
185 Al Monitor, Life after al-Hol: Iraqi women’s uneasy return from ranks of ISIS, 10 February 2024, url 
186 AP News, Iraq steps up repatriations from Islamic State camp in Syria, hoping to reduce militant threats, 15 
September 2023, url; Guardian (The), ‘The people don’t want us’: inside a camp for Iraqis returned from Syrian 
detention, 15 June 2023, url; IOM, Emerging practices of rehabilitation in Muslim-majority countries, 7 February 
2024, p. 14, url 
187 AP News, Iraq steps up repatriations from Islamic State camp in Syria, hoping to reduce militant threats, 15  
September 2023, url 
188 New Humanitarian (The), In Iraq, a rushed camp closure fuels unease over the safety of IS returns, 24 August  
2023, url; Al Monitor, Life after al-Hol: Iraqi women’s uneasy return from ranks of ISIS, 10 February 2024, url 

27 

 
 
EUROPEAN UNION AGENCY FOR ASYLUM 

being integrated.189 As of January 2024, 7 575 individuals have been repatriated to Iraq,190 
while 3 079 individuals remain in Jeddah 1 camp.191 For instance, in Tel Afar, the local 
agreement signed in 2018 by Shia and Sunni tribal leaders contained a provision preventing 
the return of first-degree relatives of any person involved in terrorist acts, unless they 
underwent tabriya. 192 

For more information on tribal aspects related to the treatment of persons with perceived 
affiliation to ISIL, see the EUAA COI report Iraq: Arab tribes and customary law Report, April 
2023.  

Additional concerns over the return of families with ISIL ties arose also in consideration of the 
rushed closure in April 2023 of Jeddah 5, the last official camp for IDPs in Iraq.193 The closure 
occurred within short notice and without preparation for communities of return and for the so 
called ‘ISIL families’.194 For more information on IDPs, see EUAA 2024 Iraq -Security Situation 
Report. 

Law n. 20/2009195 on reparation for civil victims of the war has been reportedly implemented 
in a discriminatory manner for persons perceived to be affiliated to ISIL, preventing them from 
receiving or applying for compensation.196  

1.2. 

Ethnic and religious minorities 

The Iraqi Constitution197 recognises freedom of religion and belief,198 stipulating that Islam is the 
official religion in Iraq.199 The Personal Status Law recognises a list of registered religious groups, 
allowing them to perform legal transactions and to appoint legal representatives.200  The religious 
groups recognised by the law are: Muslim, Chaldean, Assyrian, Assyrian Catholic, Syriac Orthodox, 

189 UNDP, Affiliated with ISIS: Challenges For The Return And Reintegration Of Women And  
Children, url, p. 36 
190 Al Monitor, Life after al-Hol: Iraqi women’s uneasy return from ranks of ISIS, 10 February 2024, url 
191 UNSC, Implementation of resolution 2682 (2023), Report of the Secretary-General, 25 January  
2024, url, para.71 
192 Ceasefire Centre for Civilian Rights, ‘They Are in Control’: The rise of paramilitary forces and the security of  
minorities in Iraq’s disputed Territories, January 2022, url, p. 28 
193 HRW, World Report 2024: Iraq, 11 January 2024, url 
194 New Humanitarian (The), In Iraq, a rushed camp closure fuels unease over the safety of IS returns, 24 August  
2023, url; AP News, Residents, aid workers surprised by closure of Iraqi camp, 18 April 2023, url; Rudaw, UN 
'concerned' about hasty closure of IDP camp in Nineveh, 19 April 2023, url 
195 Iraq, Law n. 20/2009, url 
196 Human Rights Watch, Iraq: Compensation for ISIS Victims Too Little, Too Late, 9 May 2023, url 
197 Article 2 (1) reads: ‘Islam is the official religion of the State and is a foundation source of legislation: A. No law 
may be enacted that contradicts the established provisions of Islam, B. No law may be enacted that contradicts the 
principles of democracy, C. No law may be enacted that contradicts the rights and basic freedoms stipulated in this 
Constitution’. Article 2 (2) reads: ‘This Constitution Guarantees the Islamic identity of the majority of the Iraqi people 
and guarantees the full religious rights to freedom of religious Belief and practice of all individuals such as 
Christians, Yazidis, and Mandean Sabeans’. Iraq, Constitution of the Republic of Iraq, 15 October 2005, url, Art. 2 (1), 
Art. 2 (2) 
198 USDOS, 2022 Report on International Religious Freedom: Iraq, 15 May 2023, url url, p. 6; Freedom House, 
Freedom in the World 2023 – Iraq (covering facts of 2022), 2023, url 
199  USDOS, 2022 Report on International Religious Freedom: Iraq, 15 May 2023, url, p. 1 
200 USDOS, 2022 Report on International Religious Freedom: Iraq, 15 May 2023, url, pp. 7-8; RFI, Country Overview 
Iraq, March 2023, url, p. 4 

28 

IRAQ – COUNTRY FOCUS 

Syriac Catholic, Armenian Apostolic, Armenian Catholic, Roman Catholic, National Protestant, 
Anglican, Evangelical Protestant Assyrian, Seventh-day Adventist, Coptic Orthodox, Yazidi, 
Sabean-Mandean and Jewish. Moreover, personal status courts are established for each 
recognised religious groups, ruling on disputes related to marriage, divorce, and inheritance. 
However, according to the government, there is no personal status court for Yazidis.201 Baha’i, 
Zoroastrian, and Kaka’i religions are not recognised. While in the KRI, Baha’i faith is recognised, 
the Federal law prohibits the practice of Baha’i religion, foreseeing sentences up to 10 years 
of prison for the practitioners. However, USDOS reported that this law is not enforced.202  

The Iraqi Penal code does not contain any provision regarding conversion.203 Personal status 
laws and regulations prohibit the conversion of Muslims to other religions.204 By law, converts 
to Christianity are considered as Muslims. In contrast, a non-Muslim individual can convert to 
Islam through a ‘simple process’. According to Christian leaders, authorities continued to force 
Christian families to register their children as Muslims in order for them to access civil 
documentation.205 Children with one Muslim parent are automatically registered as Muslims.206 
(See 1.2.3. Conflict-related sexual violence). Organisations that declare any Muslims as 
apostates, including ISIL, are forbidden according to the law.207 Apostasy cases are 
adjudicated under Sharia law.208 Blasphemy is criminalised under the Penal Code.209 
Nonetheless, the law is rarely enforced.210 In some cases, blasphemy laws can be used against 
Christians suspected to proselytise among Muslims.211 According the Iraqi Personal Status Law 
No. 188/1959 (IPSL), Muslim men are allowed to marry a non-Muslim woman, belonging to 
Christian, Jewish, or Sabean Mandean faith, while it prohibits Muslim women from marrying 
non-Muslims.212 Sunni-Shia marriages are permissible under Iraqi law.213  

For more information on the treatment of converts and atheists and individuals engaged in 
inter-sect/inter-faith marriages see 1.6.2 Converts and atheists and 1.6.3  Individuals in inter-
sect/inter-faith marriages.

201  USDOS, 2022 Report on International Religious Freedom: Iraq, 15 May 2023, url, p. 8 
202 USDOS, 2022 Report on International Religious Freedom: Iraq, 15 May 2023,  url, pp. 6, 8, 24 
203 Iraq, Penal Code, No. 111 of 1969, July 1969, url 
204 USDOS, 2022 Report on International Religious Freedom: Iraq, 15 May 2023,url, p. 6; Freedom House, Freedom 
in the World 2023 – Iraq (covering facts of 2022), 2023, url; Open Doors International, World Watch List 2024: Iraq, 
January 2024, url, p. 7 
205 USDOS, 2022 Report on International Religious Freedom: Iraq, 15 May 2023, url, p. 21 
206 Iraq, National Card Law, No. (3) of 2016, url; Freedom House, Freedom in the World 2023 – Iraq (covering facts 
of 2022), 2023, url; RFI, Country Overview Iraq, March 2023, url, p. 4; UN Human Rights Committee, Concluding  
Observations on the 6th Periodic Report, 16 August 2022, url, para. 30 
207 USDOS, 2022 Report on International Religious Freedom: Iraq, 15 May 2023, url, p. 6  
208 USCIRF, Compendium, url, p. 10; Iraq, Personal Status Law and its amendments, Law № (188) of the year 1959, 
url 
209 USCIRF, Violating rights, Enforcing the world’s blasphemy laws, 2020, url, p. 65 
210 Freedom House, Freedom in the World 2023 – Iraq (covering facts of 2022), 2023, url 
211 Open Doors International, World Watch List 2024: Iraq, January 2024, url, p. 3 
212 Iraq, Personal Status Law and its amendments, Law № (188) of the year 1959, url; USDOS, 2022 Report on 
International Religious Freedom: Iraq, 15 May 2023, url, p. 7; USCIRF, 2023 Anti-Conversion Laws Compendium,  
url, p. 21; RFI, Country Overview Iraq, March 2023, url, p. 4; UN Human Rights Committee, Concluding Observations 
on the 6th Periodic Report, 16 August 2022, url, para. 30 
213 Sanbar S., email communication to EUAA, 16 March 2024 

29 

EUROPEAN UNION AGENCY FOR ASYLUM 

Participation of minorities to political life is hindered by lack of a meaningful political 
representation.214 A quota system is in place to nominally ensure a representation of smaller 
religious and ethnic minorities in the Council of Representatives.215 In Iraq, a total of nine out of 
329 seats are assigned to minorities from different provinces,216 five seats are reserved for 
Christians and one seat each for Fayli Kurds, Yazidis, Sabean Mandeans, and Shabaks. In the KRI, 
five seats are reserved for Turkmen, five for Christians, and one for Armenians.217 Similarly, in the 
KRI political participation of the minorities remains weak due to the power of ruling political party, 
such as KDP.218 The widespread displacement from areas formerly occupied by ISIL is an 
additional factor that has hindered the political rights of minority groups.219 In February 2024, 
Iraq’s federal court ruled that the Kurdistan Region parliament’s minority quota seats are 
“unconstitutional”, rejecting the legitimacy of the legislature’s 11 minority seats.220  

The draft laws on Cybercrime and Freedom of Expression and Peaceful Assembly, re-
introduced to Parliament between November 2022 and May 2023, if passed, could be used 
as a means to target religious minorities and atheists, restricting religious expression, 
livelihoods and assembly.221 As of February 2024, the approval of the draft law on Cybercrime 
has reportedly been postponed due to the opposition.222 See 1.1.1 Members of political 
opposition parties, political and human rights activists, protesters. 

1.2.1. 

Treatment of ethno-religious minorities 

Decades of conflict and violence severely affected the historical ethnic and religious diversity of 
the country, particularly ethno-religious minorities,223 and intensified current sectarian divisions 
and mistrust among communities.224 Notwithstanding the recognition of freedom of religion and 
belief enshrined in the Iraqi Constitution, legislative framework and customs reportedly favour the 
Muslim majority.225 Members of religious minority groups continue to experience ‘social and 
political disenfranchisement and restrictions on their freedom of religion or belief’.226 In some 
cases, misconceptions and stereotypes reportedly fuelled hate speech against minorities.227 
Non-Muslim minority groups reported instances of abductions, threats, pressure and harassment 
with the aim to force them to observe Islamic traditions, mainly by Iran-backed militia groups.228 

214 USCIRF, Country Update Iraq, September 2023, url, p. 1; MEI, Addressing challenges to tolerance and religious 
diversity in Iraq, 5 July 2023, url; Manara Magazine, The Political Marginalisation of Ethnic and Religious Minorities 
in Iraq, 17 March 2022, url;  
215 Freedom House, Freedom in the World 2023 – Iraq (covering facts of 2022), 2023, url 
216 USCIRF, Country Update Iraq, September 2023, url, p.3 
217 Freedom House, Freedom in the World 2023 – Iraq (covering facts of 2022), 2023, url 
218 Manara Magazine, The Political Marginalisation of Ethnic and Religious Minorities in Iraq, 17 March 2022, url 
219 Freedom House, Freedom in the World 2023 – Iraq (covering facts of 2022), 2023, url: RFI, Country Overview 
Iraq, March 2023, url, p. 4 
220 Rudaw, Iraq's top court rules against Kurdistan Region parliament minority seats, 21 February 2024, url 
221 USCIRF, Country Update Iraq, September 2023, url, p.3; AI, Iraq: Draft laws threaten rights to freedom of 
expression and peaceful assembly, 18 July 2023, url 
222 UNDP, Media landscape in Iraq, 5 February 2024, url, p. 8 
223 MEI, Addressing challenges to tolerance and religious diversity in Iraq, 5 July 2023, url 
RFI, Country Overview Iraq, March 2023, url, p. 4 
224 JISRA, JISRA in Iraq, August 2022, url, p. 1; USCIRF, Country Update Iraq, September 2023, url, p. 1 
225 Australia, DFAT, Country Information Report Iraq, 16 January 2023, url, p. 17; MEI, Addressing challenges to 
tolerance and religious diversity in Iraq, 5 July 2023, url 
226 USCIRF, Country Update Iraq, September 2023, url 
227 MEI, Addressing challenges to tolerance and religious diversity in Iraq, 5 July 2023, url 
228 USDOS, 2022 Report on International Religious Freedom: Iraq, 15 May 2023, url, p. 30 

30 

IRAQ – COUNTRY FOCUS 

According to USCIRF, the PMF is considered as one of the most ‘widespread and politically 
empowered impediments’ to religious freedom in Iraq.229 Iran-backed PMF militias were 
reportedly involved in killing, kidnapping, and extortion, particularly in ethnically and 
religiously mixed provinces.230 

Violence and displacement due to religious identity still occur. Reportedly, discrimination is mostly 
experienced in areas where the targeted religious and ethnic groups are a minority, leading to 
displacement of those groups in other areas.231 In the KRI, IDP minority groups experienced 
property theft and discrimination in accessing labour market.232 

Sunnis 

PMF militias in Mosul and Ninewa intensified political oppression and extortion towards 
Sunnis, particularly following the October 2021 election.233 Unlawful detention of minority 
groups by PMF in Ninewa governorate, notably Kurds, Turkmen and Christians, was reported. 
Detainees were arrested on a sectarian basis and held in secret prisons in Ninewa.234 As 
emerged in a focus group conducted in December 2022 by Action against Hunger in five 
districts in Ninewa, sectarian and tribal tensions persist, while societal cohesion may vary 
depending on communities. For instance, in Tal Afar, it emerged that fears of violence based 
on religious affiliation continue and that Sunnis feel discriminated against for being perceived 
as ISIL supporters. In Sinjar, tensions between Yazidis and Sunnis were reported.235 In Mosul, 
PMF-affiliated groups, such as Kataib Babiliyoun236 and Shabak Hashd237 ‘indiscriminately 
harass, intimidate, and arrest Sunni civilians’.238 Sunni Arabs were also unlawfully detained, 
amounting to 90 % of all prisoners in detention in Iraq, and were subjected to torture to extract 
confessions.239 According to the Joint Initiative for Strategic Religious Action (JISRA),240 as of 
August 2022, security forces continued to arbitrarily detain, deny fair trials, and forcibly 
disappear Sunni Arabs because of suspicions of their affiliation to ISIL.241  

Sunni Arabs were particularly subjected to ‘abuses and tortures’ during arrest and pretrial 
detention by Federal Police, NSS, PMF242 and they were regularly targeted at PMF 

229 USCIRF, Country Update Iraq, September 2023, url, p. 3 
230 USDOS, 2022 Country Report on Human Rights Practices: Iraq, 20 March 2023, url, p. 5 
231 Freedom House, Freedom in the World 2023 – Iraq (covering facts of 2022), 2023, url ; RFI, Country Overview 
Iraq, March 2023, url, p. 4 
232 USCIRF, Country Update Iraq, September 2023, url, p. 5 
233 Brookings, New Vulnerabilities for Iraq’s Resilient Popular Mobilization Forces, 3 February 2022, url 
234 USDOS, 2022 Country Report on Human Rights Practices: Iraq, 20 March 2023, url, p. 12 
235 Action Against Hunger, Conflict sensitivity assessment in Ninewa, 27 January 2023, url, pp. 4, 12Sipri, Post-
Conflict Reconstruction in The Nineveh Plains of Iraq, November 2022, url, p. 20  
236 For more information, see: Knights M., Beth-Addai Y., Profile: Kataib Babiliyoun (50th PMF Brigade), 16 March 
2023, url 
237 For more information, see: Malik H., Profile: Hashd al-Shabak (30th PMF Brigade), 22 June 2022, url 
238 Bertelsmann Foundation, Iraq Country Report 2022, 23 February 2022, url 
239 USDOS, 2022 Report on International Religious Freedom: Iraq, 15 May 2023, url, p. 32 
240 JISRA (Joint Initiative for Strategic Religious Action) is an international interfaith consortium and is based on a  
partnership of 50 civil society organisations based in Ethiopia, Indonesia, Iraq, Kenya, Mali, Nigeria and Uganda. 
The consortium consists of Mensen met een Missie, Faith to Action Network, Tearfund (UK and Netherlands) and 
Search For Common Ground. 
241 JISRA, JISRA in Iraq, August 2022, url, p. 1 
242 USDOS, 2022 Country Report on Human Rights Practices: Iraq, 20 March 2023, url, p. 7 

31 

EUROPEAN UNION AGENCY FOR ASYLUM 

checkpoints for alleged ISIL affiliation.243 USDOS reported that, during 2022, in some cases, 
Sunni individuals were accused of ISIL affiliation to silence their criticism and were held in 
secret detention centres by the PMF. According to the same source, in Ninewa province, Sunni 
Turkmen were targeted by PMF at checkpoints and asked for PMF clearance in order to obtain 
government documentation. It is reported that Shia-backed PMF militia committed physical 
abuses on Sunni civilians as a reprisal for ISIL crimes against Shias. In November 2022, 
allegations were raised by Sunni representatives in the parliament over the PMF preventing 
displaced Sunnis in Salah al-Din, Diyala, and Ninewa Province to return to their areas of 
origins.244 See also 1.1.3 Individuals with (perceived) affiliation to ISIL. 

Christians 

After 2003, most members of Christian communities from central and southern governorates 
fled to the KRI to escape sectarian violence.245 According to Open Doors, the Iraqi government 
mostly tolerates historical churches. Members of historical Christian communities (i.e. mostly 
Greek Orthodox and Roman Catholic churches) as well as Evangelical, Baptist and Pentecostal 
churches in Baghdad and Basra, have however been ‘affected by violations from radical 
Islamic movements and non-Christian leaders, including discrimination from the authorities.’246 
Sources reported that Christians in Iraq have been exposed to harassment, discrimination and 
violence,247 with alleged tolerance of such targeting by authorities.248 Instances of land and 
properties grabbing from Christians occurred,249 particularly in Ninewa plains. In the same 
area, Christians accused government officials of promoting a demographic change in favour of 
Shia Shabak, also in light of the fact that most Christians did not return to their areas of origin 
after ISIL’s defeat.250 According to USCIRF, the PMF continued to target Christians through 
enforced disappearance, extortion, and physical violence, as well as by controlling small 
communities imposing checkpoints and curfews. The same source stated that restrictions on 
transporting goods between villages were also applied to Christian business owners and 
farmers.251 Following the entry into force of the law banning alcohol in February 2023, Christian 
politicians asked for the overturn of the law claiming that it did not take into account the right of 
minorities, restricting their freedom.252 (See 1.6 Individuals perceived as transgressing moral and 
religious norms). In the KRI, Christians were not reported to experience interference by the 
government in their religious practices.253  

243 USCIRF, Country Update Iraq, 2022, April 2022, url  
244 USDOS, 2022 Report on International Religious Freedom: Iraq, 15 May 2023, url, p. 12 
245 CFRI, Christians in Post-2003 Iraq: Fragmentation Dynamics, Ethnic and Sectarian Fault Lines, 11 August 2023,  
url; Rudaw, Iraqi Christians exodus leaves churches empty in the south, 25 January 2024, url 
246 Open Doors International, World Watch List 2024: Iraq, January 2024, url, p. 3  
247 CFRI, Christians in Post-2003 Iraq: Fragmentation Dynamics, Ethnic and Sectarian Fault Lines, 11 August 2023, 
url; USCIRF, Country Update Iraq, September 2023, url, p. 4 
248 USCIRF, Country Update Iraq, September 2023, url, p. 4 
249 Open Doors International, World Watch List 2024: Iraq, January 2024, url, p. 5 
250 IOM, Barriers to Return for Ethno-Religious Minorities in Iraq: Identity Politics and Political Patronage Among 
Yazidi and Christian Communities from Ninewa Governorate, January 2020, url, p. 29; CFRI, Christians in Post-
2003 Iraq: Fragmentation Dynamics, Ethnic and Sectarian Fault Lines, 11 August 2023, url; SIPRI, Post-Conflict 
Reconstruction In The Nineveh Plains Of Iraq, November 2022, url, pp. 20-22 
251 USCIRF, Country Update Iraq, September 2023, url, p. 4 
252 BBC, Iraq alcohol ban: Christian political party appeals, saying it is undemocratic, 6 March 2023, url; Al Monitor, 
'Iraq is not an Islamic country': Minorities protest Baghdad's alcohol ban as unconstitutional, 12 March 2023, url  
253 USDOS, 2022 Report on International Religious Freedom: Iraq, 15 May 2023, url 

32 

IRAQ – COUNTRY FOCUS 

Yazidis 

Yazidis still face discrimination,254 particularly by the PMF,255 who have continued to engage in 
acts of violence, extorsion and enforced disappearance.256 In December 2022, the Iraqi 
Council of Ministers issued a decree granting Yazidis ownership of their residential properties 
in Sinjar.257 Progress has been reportedly achieved by the government in the further 
implementation of the Yazidi Survivors Law.258 The law was adopted by the government in 
2021 to provide compensation for Yazidis and other ethnic minorities such as Turkmen, 
Christians, and Shabaks.259 First reparations were distributed in March 2023, but significant 
obstacles to the law’s full implementation have remained in place.260 Despite the progress 
achieved, Yazidis have remained marginalised, with constraints including accessing the labour 
market.261 In April 2023, a campaign of hate speech reportedly targeted the Yazidi community 
based on accusation of burning a mosque in Sinjar.262 In the KRI, Yazidis were not reported to 
experience interference by authorities in their religious observances.263 For information on 
Yazidi children, see section 1.4.2 Children with perceived affiliation to ISIL. 

Other ethnic and religious minorities 

While Baha’i faith is recognised in the KRI264 by law, it is forbidden in Federal Iraq, although the 
ban is not enforced.265 Believers are not recognised as members of a minority religion,266 living 
in a condition of longstanding isolation.267 Due to challenges in obtaining identity documents 
and due to discrimination they face, many Baha’i are reported as stateless.268 Additionally, 
since Baha’i marriages are unregistered, children born to such marriages effectively become 
stateless.269  

According to the Coalition for Religious Equality and Inclusive Development (CREID), Sabean-
Mandeans are reported to live in ‘constant threat’ from extremist Islamist groups, without 
protection granted by the authorities, and vulnerable to seizure of lands.270 Sabean-Mandeans 

254 Open Doors International, World Watch List 2024: Iraq, January 2024, url, p. 8 
255 USDOS, 2022 Report on International Religious Freedom: Iraq, 15 May 2023, url 
256 USCIRF, Country Update Iraq, September 2023, url, p. 4 
257 USDOS, 2023 Report to Congress on Section 5 of the Elie Wiesel Genocide and Atrocities Prevention Act of  
2018 (P.L. 115-441) [as amended], 2 August 2023, url; USCIRF, Country update Iraq 2023, September 2023, url 
258 Iraq, Law No.8 of 2021 - Yazidi Female Survivors Law, url 
259 Human Rights Watch, Iraq: Compensation for ISIS Victims Too Little, Too Late, 9 May 2023, url 
260 USCIRF, Country Update Iraq, September 2023, url, p. 5 
261 MEI, Addressing challenges to tolerance and religious diversity in Iraq, 5 July 2023, url 
262 Coalition for just reparations, Coalition for Just Reparations Condemns Hate Speech and Accusations Against  
Yazidi, 11 March 2023, url; Kurdistan24, Iraqi Sunni Endowment confirms no mosques were attacked in Sinjar, 30  
April 2024, url ; MEI, Addressing challenges to tolerance and religious diversity in Iraq, 5 July 2023, url 
263 USDOS, 2022 Report on International Religious Freedom: Iraq, 15 May 2023, url 
264 Open Doors International, World Watch List 2024: Iraq, January 2024, url, p. 8 
265 USDOS, 2022 Report on International Religious Freedom: Iraq, 15 May 2023, url 
266 Freedom House, Freedom in the World 2023 – Iraq (covering facts of 2022), 2023, url; USDOS, 2022 Report on 
International Religious Freedom: Iraq, 15 May 2023, url 
267 CFRI, Baha'is in Iraq: From the Realm of Shadows to the Demand for Recognition, 2 June 2023, url 
268 Boston University School of Law, The Campaign To End Statelessness In Iraq, March 2022, url, pp. 60-61 
269 Freedom House, Freedom in the World 2023 – Iraq (covering facts of 2022), 2023, url 
270 CREID, Violence and Discrimination Against Women of Religious Minority Backgrounds in Iraq, 6 December  
2022, url, p. 188 

33 

EUROPEAN UNION AGENCY FOR ASYLUM 

are also subject to misconception and stereotypes, being accused of witchcraft and sorcery 
by Sunni and Shia extremist groups.271  

Turkmen reportedly experienced discrimination by the authorities both in Iraq and in the KRI272 
and experienced hate speech and mockery in media for practicing sacred rituals.273 In Tel 
Afar, Turkmen were reportedly harassed at PMF checkpoints.274  

Shabaks also face discrimination from authorities, both in Iraq and in the KRI.275 Shia Shabaks 
were targeted by hate speech and mockery in media for practicing sacred rituals.276  

Iraqis of African descent are also reported to face discrimination, political and economic 
exclusion.277  

1.3.  Women 

Women in Iraq had historically enjoyed more rights compared to most women in other Middle 
Eastern countries. The position of Iraqi women rapidly deteriorated following the 1991 Gulf 
War, when a set of laws restricting women’s rights was introduced under Saddam Hussein’s 
regime, mostly with the aim to mobilise loyalty and appease conservative religious and tribal 
groups. Additionally, the US sanctions imposed after the 1991 Gulf War disproportionally 
affected women and girls in accessing rights, including to education and to employment.278 
Iraqi women have been subjected to various forms of violence,279 which has exacerbated with 
the deteriorated security situation following the US-led 2003 occupation of Iraq280 and the 
resurgent influence of tribal and religious groups.281 Tribal customary laws and practices within 
Iraqi society are seen as root causes for various forms of violence and violations of women’s 

271 Journal of Baylon Center for Humanities Studies, Vol. 13, Issue 1, The Mandaeans in Iraq Today: Perceptions,  
Stereotypes, Prejudices, and Exclusion, 2023, url, p. 66; Australia, DFAT, Country Information Report: Iraq, 16  
January 2023, url, p. 21 
272 USDOS, 2022 Report on International Religious Freedom: Iraq, 15 May 2023, url, p. 19 
273 MEI, Addressing challenges to tolerance and religious diversity in Iraq, 5 July 2023, url; USDOS, 2022 Report on 
International Religious Freedom: Iraq, 15 May 2023, url 
274 USDOS, 2022 Report on International Religious Freedom: Iraq, 15 May 2023, url, p. 15 
275 Kirkuk Now, Shabak count on provincial council elections for public utilities, 14 December 2023, url; USDOS, 
2022 Report on International Religious Freedom: Iraq, 15 May 2023, url, p. 19 
276 MEI, Addressing challenges to tolerance and religious diversity in Iraq, 5 July 2023, url 
277 Boston University School of Law, The Campaign To End Statelessness In Iraq, March 2022, url, p. 61 
278 HRW, Background on Women's Status in Iraq Prior to the Fall of the Saddam Hussein Government, 
November 2003, url; Al-Obaidi, B. S.,The impact of legislation on empowering women. A comparative study 
between the effective Iraqi Penal Code No. 111 of 1969 and the new draft Iraqi Penal Code, Journal of Positive 
School Psychology, Vol. 6 No. 2, 2022, 6134-6148, url, p. 6135 
279 Abed A., Violence Against Women in Iraq: Between Practice and Legislation, LSE Blog, 8 July 2020, url; USDOS, 
2020 Country Reports on Human Rights Practices: Iraq, 30 March 2021, url, pp. 47-53; UNAMI, Opposing Violence 
Against Women - Remarks by SRSG Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert Baghdad - 11 September 2021, url 
280 HRW, No one is safe. Abuses of women in Iraq’s Criminal Justice System, February 2014, url, pp. 16-18; Cortright, 
D., et al. ., Women and the Iraq war, 20 years later, Fourth Freedom Forum, 2023, url, pp. 6-7 
281 Australia, DFAT, Country Information Report Iraq, 16 January 2023, url, p. 29 

34 

IRAQ – COUNTRY FOCUS 

rights,282 including in the KRI.283 Women are in practice used as commodities and collateral 
during the resolution of tribal conflicts,284 for example through forced and child marriage, 
exchange or trading of women as compensation (fasliya), and as part of settlement of a 
dispute among tribes.285 The so called ‘honour killing’ is among the worst violations of 
women’s rights as a result of the tribal system.286 (For more information on the impact of tribal 
customary laws and practices on women and on other profiles in Iraq see EUAA COI Report 
Iraq: Arab tribes and customary law, April 2023).  

During the anti-government demonstrations that unfolded across the country287 in 2019288 and 
2020,289 women played a central role, taking to the streets to demand for equal rights as well 
as for broader social, political, and economic change.290  

Although individual circumstances vary, Iraqi women across all levels of society have 
continued to face widespread discrimination in everyday life291 as well as various forms of 
violence as a result of discriminatory laws and traditional cultural norms.292 Women are 
discriminated against by laws regulating, inter alia, freedom of movement, personal status, 
family (including in areas such as marriage, divorce, child custody), religion, labour (e.g. 
owning and managing properties or businesses), inheritance and criminal procedure. Since 
religious groups have their own personal status courts responsible for handling issues related 
to marriage, divorce, and inheritance,293 women’s rights may differ among religious groups.294 
(See 1.2 Ethnic and religious minorities). From a legal perspective, the situation of women in 

282 HRW, Interview with EUAA, 13 March 2023, originally cited in EUAA, COI Report, Iraq: Arab tribes and customary 
law, April 2023, url; France24/AFP, In Iraq, tribal traditions rob women, girls of rights, 18 April 2019, url; Alshamary, 
M., Interview with Al Jazeera, The Stream, Why hasn’t Iraq adopted any laws against domestic violence?, 15 
February 2023, url, minutes 1:19 - 1:37; 8:38 – 9:50 
283 Mustafah, R., Addressing Violence Against Women in Iraqi Kurdistan, 28 March 2022, url; AW, Worrisome 
increase of “Honour” crimes in Iraqi Kurdistan, 21 March 2022, url; Hardi, C., The backlash against women’s rights in 
Iraq’s Kurdistan region, Chatham House, 14 April 2023, url 
284 HRW, Interview with EUAA, 13 March 2023; OWFI, Interview with EUAA, 16 March 2023; Ceasefire for Civilian 
Rights, Correspondence with EUAA, 16 March 2023, originally cited in EUAA, COI Report, Iraq: Arab tribes and 
customary law, April 2023, url  
285 UNHCR, Tribal Conflict Resolution in Iraq, January 15, 2018, url, p. 2; HRW, Interview with EUAA, 13 March 2023; 
OWFI, Interview with EUAA, 16 March 2023; Ceasefire for Cilivian Rights, Correspondence with EUAA, 16 March 
2023, originally cited in EUAA, COI Report, Iraq: Arab tribes and customary law, April 2023, url; Tawfiq Marwan, M., 
Forced Marriages In Tribal Iraq: A Case Study From Kirkuk, May 2019, url, p. 6-7, 18-19 
286 OWFI, Interview with EUAA, 13 March 2023; HRW, Interview with EUAA, 16 March 2023; Ceasefire for Civilian 
Rights, Correspondence with EUAA, 16 March 2023, originally cited in EUAA, COI Report, Iraq: Arab tribes and 
customary law, April 2023, url 
287 Al-Mayali I., Iraqi Women Will Not Be Silenced, 9 February 2021, in IWPR, available at: url 
288 Independent, Women in Iraq defiantly take to the streets despite fears they ‘could die at any moment’, 23 
November 2019, url 
289 France 24, Hundreds of Iraqi women defy cleric to protest authorities, 13 February 2020, url 
290 Alkhudary T., Iraqi Women are Engaged in a Struggle for their Rights, LSE’s Middle East Centre Blog, 15 June 
2020, url; Cortright, et al. ., Women and the Iraq war, 20 years later. Fourth Freedom Forum. 2023, url , p. 14 
291 Australia, DFAT, Country Information Report Iraq, 16 January 2023, url, p. 29; Cortright, D., et al.., Women and the 
Iraq war, 20 years later, Fourth Freedom Forum, 2023, url, p. 10 
292 USDOS, 2022 Country Report on Human Rights Practices: Iraq, 20 March 2023, url, p. 57; Freedom House, 
Freedom in the World 2023 – Iraq (covering facts of 2022), 2023, url; Australia, DFAT, Country Information Report 
Iraq, 16 January 2023, url, p. 29; HRW, World Report 2024, Events of 2023, 11 January 2024, url  
293 USDOS, 2022 Country Report on Human Rights Practices: Iraq, 20 March 2023, url, p. 57 
294 USDOS, 2022 Country Report on Human Rights Practices: Iraq, 20 March 2023, url, p. 57; CREID, Violence and 
Discrimination Against Women of Religious Minority Backgrounds in Iraq, 6 December 2022, url, pp. 9, 159-160  

35 

EUROPEAN UNION AGENCY FOR ASYLUM 

the KRI is described as relatively better compared to the rest of the country295 (see 1.3.1 
Violence against women). The KRG also established institutions, such as the Directorate of 
Combating Violence Against Women and the High Council of Women’s Affairs, to implement 
policies on gender equality. The implementation of these reforms has been described as 
problematic, with activists reporting no genuine will among members of the Kurdish authorities 
to improve women’s rights. Individuals who advocate for gender equality in the KRI are 
reported to ‘face threats from powerful conservative and patriarchal groups that have a vested 
interest in maintaining the status quo.’296 

Women need the consent of a male relative or legal representative to obtain a passport and a 
Civil Status Identification Document.297 In practice, regardless of whether they are married, 
divorced and have court-ordered custody, women (including in the KRI) cannot travel with 
children below the age of 18 without the father’s permission. Women who travel alone with 
their children may be required by border control officers to show proof of the father’s 
permission or of a court document.298 

Although women have legally the same rights as men in owning land and other properties, in 
practice property rights of women are not respected.299 Both the Iraqi300 and Kurdistan 
Personal Status laws301 allow women to initiate divorce proceedings. Divorced women are not 
entitled to alimony and in some cases, they are required to return their dowry. Although 
fathers are automatically granted guardianship of their children, divorced mothers may be 
awarded custody of their children until age 10, extendable by a court up to age 15; afterwards, 
the children can choose with which parent they wish to live.302 

There is no law prohibiting the participation of women in the political process. Women hold a 
record 97 seats in parliament,303 almost 30 % of parliamentary seats for the first time since the 
2003 US invasion of Iraq. Nonetheless, women legislators are reported to be largely silent304 
and excluded from decision making and political power.305 For instance, there are anecdotal 
reports about women members of parliament being required to seek approval from their 
parties’ male leadership before expressing opinions publicly. In some rural areas, women are 

295 Kaya, Z. N., Gender equality in Iraq and Iraqi Kurdistan, LSE’s Middle East Centre Blog, 5 January 2018, url; 
Australia, DFAT, Country Information Report Iraq, 16 January 2023, url, p. 29; UN Iraq, Iraq Common Country 
Analysis 2022, 27 July 2022, url, p. 7 
296 Hardi, C., The backlash against women’s rights in Iraq’s Kurdistan region, Chatham House, 14 April 2023, url, p. 
48 
297 USDOS, 2022 Country Report on Human Rights Practices: Iraq, 20 March 2023, url, p. 58; Freedom House, 
Freedom in the world 2023 Iraq (covering facts of 2022), 2023, url 
298 HRW, Trapped, Iraq, 18 July 2023, url, p. 46 
299 USDOS, 2022 Country Report on Human Rights Practices: Iraq, 20 March 2023, url, p. 57 
300 Iraq, Personal Status Law No. 188/1959, Art. 40-41, url 
301 Iraq/KRG, Personal Status Law, Act No. 15/2008, url 
302 USDOS, 2022 Country Report on Human Rights Practices: Iraq, 20 March 2023, url, p. 57 
303 USDOS, 2022 Country Report on Human Rights Practices: Iraq, 20 March 2023, url, pp. 43-44 
304 Al Jazeera, As Iraq backslides on gender equality, where are its women MPs?, 9 September 2023, url 
305 New Paradigm Project, Women and the Iraq War, 20 Years Later, March 2023, url, p. 9; UNDP, Adapting the 
Indashyikirwa Intimate Partner Violence Prevention Programme: Lessons Learned in Iraq and Lebanon, 27 February 
2023, url, p. 29 

36 

IRAQ – COUNTRY FOCUS 

required to be accompanied by a male guardian when casting a ballot at a voting station.306 
Women politicians are also reported to face threats from conservative elements in society.307 

Illiteracy rates among Iraqi women continued to be higher than among men.308 Significant 
barriers, such as traditional gender roles and norms, family levels of education, poverty, 
perceived protection concerns, limit girls’ access to education, especially in territories formerly 
under ISIL’ control. In some rural areas, girls are denied access to school by their families.309 
Women are disproportionally affected by unemployment, with rates almost twice as high than 
that for men (28.2 % compared to 14.7 %).310 

1.3.1. 

Violence against women 

Domestic and honour-based violence 

Article 41 of the Penal Code (No.111 of 1969)311 grants husbands the right to discipline their 
wives and children.312 Article 409 of the Penal Code313 provides mitigating circumstances for 
the sentence for so called ‘honour killings’.314 Such provisions are said to enable impunity for 
male violence against women, including murder for ‘honourable motives’.315  The Iraqi federal 
government has not yet adopted a law combatting domestic violence,316  and there is no law 
specifically criminalising spousal rape.317  

306 USDOS, 2022 Country Report on Human Rights Practices: Iraq, 20 March 2023, url, p. 44 
307 Freedom House, Freedom in the world 2023 Iraq (covering facts of 2022), 2023, url 
308 UNFPA, Iraqi Women Integrated Social and Health Survey: Summary of Key Findings, June 2022, url, p. 5 
309 UNAMI/ OHCHR, The Right to Education in Iraq, Part Two: Obstacles to Girls’ Education after ISIL, 24 January 
2021, url pp. 3, 7 
310 ILO/CSO/KRSO, Iraqi Labour Force Survey 2021, 5 July 2022, url, pp. 17, 45, 68; CFRI, Women’s Economic 
Empowerment in Iraq: A Double-Edged Sword?, 8 November 2023, url; IOM, Employment in the South of Iraq: 
Challenging Prospects for Women and Youth, 2023, url, p. 5; World Bank, Women’s Labor Force Participation in the 
Kurdistan Region of Iraq, April 2022, url, p. 2 
311 Article 41 (1) reads: ‘There is no crime if the act is committed while exercising a legal right. The following are 
considered to be in exercise of a legal right: (1) The punishment of a wife by her husband, the disciplining by 
parents and teachers of children under their authority within certain limits prescribed by law or by custom.’ Iraq, 
Penal Code, No. 111 of 1969, July 1969, url, Art. 41 (1) 
312 UNPD, Iraq - Gender Justice & The Law 2019, url, p. 2; Freedom House, Freedom in the World 2023 – Iraq 
(covering facts of 2022), 2023, url 
313 Article 409 reads: ‘Any person who surprises his wife in the act of adultery or finds his girlfriend in bed with her 
lover and kills them immediately or one of them or assaults one of them so that he or she dies or is left permanently 
disabled is punishable by a period of detention not exceeding 3 years. It is not permissible to exercise the right of 
legal defense against any person who uses this excuse nor do the rules of aggravating circumstance apply against 
him.’ Iraq, Penal Code, No. 111 of 1969, July 1969, url, Art. 409 
314 UNAMI/OHCHR, Accountability for Domestic violence in Iraq: Promoting justice and non-discrimination, 7 March 
2024, url, p. 6 
315 HRW, World Report 2024, Events of 2023, 11 January 2024, url 
316 HRW, World Report 2024, Events of 2023, 11 January 2024, url; Freedom House, Freedom in the world 2023 
Iraq (covering facts of 2022), 2023, url; AI, Report 2022/23; The State of the World's Human Rights; Iraq 2022, 27 
March 2023, url 
317 UNPD, Iraq - Gender Justice & The Law 2019, url, p. 2; USDOS, 2022 Country Report on Human Rights Practices: 
Iraq, 20 March 2023, url  

37 

EUROPEAN UNION AGENCY FOR ASYLUM 

Despite continued efforts by women’s rights groups advocating for a law to protect women 
from domestic violence,318 a draft Anti-Domestic Violence Law has been pending since 2012,319 
being strongly opposed in parliament on the grounds that it would go against Islam, ‘national 
values’ and would be ‘incompatible with Iraqi culture’.320 In September 2023, the Chairperson 
of the Parliamentary Committee for Women, Family, and Child Affairs formally requested the 
Speaker to withdraw the draft law from the agenda for further review, based on the assertion 
that the draft law ‘does not conform to religious and moral values, societal norms, and Iraqi 
constitutional principles’.  

In 2011, KRG adopted a law on combating domestic violence,321 criminalising physical, sexual, 
psychological violence, spousal rape and female genital mutilation322 and in 2015 repealed 
Article 409 of the Penal Code.323 Despite these reforms, tangible progress towards protecting 
women against violence over the past two decades in the KRI has been limited,324 and 
violence is in fact reported to be high325 and on the rise.326 

Violence against women in Iraq has continued to remain a serious327 and pervasive 
problem.328 Although reliable statistics are not available,329 violence committed by family 
members to protect the ‘honour’ of the family or tribe330 is reported to be widespread and to 
occur across the whole country on a daily basis, regardless of ethno-religious background.331 
Violations of honour that contravene tribal social norms and that can spark honour-based 
violence against a woman can be due to a range of reasons, including seeking a partner of 
her own choosing,332 seeking divorce against the will of the family or tribe, showing 
disobedient behaviour to male relatives, elderly female relatives, or husband, being a survivor 
of sexual assault or rape.333  

318 CIVICUS, IRAQ: ‘We've submitted many bills, but parliament refuses to adopt a law against GBV’, 7 March 2022, 
url; HRW, World Report 2024, Events of 2023, 11 January 2024, url 
319 UNAMI/OHCHR, Accountability for Domestic violence in Iraq: Promoting justice and non-discrimination, 7 March 
2024, url, p. 7 
320 Al Jazeera, As Iraq backslides on gender equality, where are its women MPs?, 9 September 2023, url  
321 UNAMI/OHCHR, Accountability for Domestic violence in Iraq: Promoting justice and non-discrimination, 7 March  
2024, url, p. 7 
322 Hardi, C., The backlash against women’s rights in Iraq’s Kurdistan region, Chatham House, 14 April 2023, url  
323 UNAMI/OHCHR, Accountability for Domestic violence in Iraq: Promoting justice and non-discrimination, 7 March 
2024, url, p. 7 
324 Hardi, C., The backlash against women’s rights in Iraq’s Kurdistan region, Chatham House, 14 April 2023, url  
325 Rudaw, No 2021 Court Cases of Femicides Settled in Sulaimani: Local NGO, 21 June 2022, url; SEED 
Foundation, Statement Condemning Violence Against Women in Kurdistan, 22 February 2022, url  
326 Ceasefire Centre for Civilian Rights, Terms of Reference: Report on Family-Based Violence Legislation in the 
Kurdistan Region of Iraq, 2 August 2023, url; Rudaw, Two Arrested in Erbil after Woman Falls from Apartment, 18 
November 2023, url  
327 BTI, 2022 Country Report Iraq, 23 February 2023, url, p. 14 
328 Abdo G., Violence Against Women Permeates All Aspects of Life in Iraq, Wilson Center, 29 November 2022, url; 
USDOS, 2022 Country Report on Human Rights Practices: Iraq, 20 March 2023, url, p. 50 
329 UN Iraq, Iraq Common Country Analysis 2022, 27 July 2022, url, p. 9; UNAMI/OHCHR, Accountability for 
Domestic violence in Iraq: Promoting justice and non-discrimination, 7 March 2024, url, p. 9 
330 CFRI, Women’s Economic Empowerment in Iraq: A Double-Edged Sword?, 8 November 2023, url  
331 Assafir Al-Arabi, In Iraq, Violence Against Women Comes in many Shapes and Forms, 4 August 2022, url; LSE, 
Violence Against Women in Iraq: Between Practice and Legislation, 8 July 2020, url  
332 Hamoudi, H. A et al., The Resolution of Disputes in State and Tribal Law in the South of Iraq, 2015, url; p. 240 
333 Norway, Landinfo, Temanotat: Irak - Ære og æresrelatert vold [Thematic Note: Iraq - Honour and Honour Related 
Violence in Iraq and Kurdistan], 10 March 2022, url, pp. 19-20; 13-14 

38 

IRAQ – COUNTRY FOCUS 

During the reference period of this report, several cases of honour-based killing of women334 
have occurred, which have sparked public debate335 as well as protests across the country 
calling for laws to protect women from violence.336 The KRI in particular saw an increase in 
reports of women killed by male relatives, for reasons such as converting to a different 
religion, or identifying as transgender women.337 For more detailed information on honour-
based violence against women in Iraq see EUAA COI Report Iraq: Arab tribes and customary 
law, April 2023. 

Violence against women and girls is mostly perpetrated with impunity across the country.338 
Cases of domestic violence are underreported owing to various factors, including social 
stigma, fear of reprisal, survivor-blaming and prioritisation of family reconciliation by 
authorities, as well as negative attitudes displayed by officials towards survivors.339 Effective 
state protection remained severely limited,340 including with regards to access to shelter and 
justice,341 with reports of some women survivors of trafficking being tried and convicted for 
prostitution.342 Perpetrators of gender-based violence are rarely prosecuted.343 Lawyers 
assisting women victims of domestic violence are reported to be at risk of harassment.344  

There are 16 family protection units established by the government at police stations across 
the country.345 These units,346 however, lack the capacity to support survivors and prioritise 
family reconciliation over protection. A limited number of protection centres (shelters) were 
established by the government in Karbala, Anbar, Qadissiya and Kirkuk governorates347 but 
their service provision is reported to be inadequate.348 Several secret shelters are run by a 

334 AI, Report 2022/23; The State of the World's Human Rights; Iraq 2022, 27 March 2023, url; BBC, The Iraqi 
YouTube star killed by her father, 6 September 2023, url Channel 4 News, Iraqi Youtuber killed by father in ‘honour 
killing’, via YouTube, 4 February 2023, url; AI, Iraq: Action must be taken on gender-based violence after murder of 
Tiba Ali by her father, 3 February 2023, url 
335 Al Jazeera, As Iraq backslides on gender equality, where are its women MPs?, 9 September 2023, url  
336 New Arab, Iraqi women still live the legacy of gender-based violence, 8 March 2023, url  
337 AI, Report 2022/23; The State of the World's Human Rights; Iraq 2022, 27 March 2023, url  
338 HRW, World Report 2024, Events of 2023, 11 January 2024, url; AI, Report 2022/23; The State of the World's 
Human Rights; Iraq 2022, 27 March 2023, url; UNAMI/OHCHR, Accountability for Domestic violence in Iraq: 
Promoting justice and non-discrimination, 7 March 2024, url, p. 13; Alshamary, M., Interview with Al Jazeera, The 
Stream, Why hasn’t Iraq adopted any laws against domestic violence?, 15 February 2023, url, minutes 1:19 - 1:37; 
8:38 – 9:50 
339 UNAMI/OHCHR, Accountability for Domestic violence in Iraq: Promoting justice and non-discrimination, 7 March 
2024, url, p. 2 
340 AI, Report 2022/23; The State of the World's Human Rights; Iraq 2022, 27 March 2023, url 
341 UNAMI/OHCHR, Accountability for Domestic violence in Iraq: Promoting justice and non-discrimination, 7 March 
2024, url, pp. 11-14 
342 HRW, World Report 2024, Events of 2023, 11 January 2024, url 
343 HRW, Interview with EUAA, 16 March 2023, originally cited in EUAA, COI Report, Iraq: Arab tribes and customary 
law, April 2023, url 
344 MENA Rights Group, Iraqi Human Rights Lawyer Mohammed Jumaa Facing Disciplinary Proceedings, 20 
October 2022, url; USDOS, 2022 Country Report on Human Rights Practices: Iraq, 20 March 2023, url  
345 USDOS, 2022 Country Report on Human Rights Practices: Iraq, 20 March 2023, url, p. 51 
346 Such units are overseen by the Directorate of Family and Child Protection against Domestic Violence (DFCPDV), 
which was established in 2009 under the Ministry of Interior. The DFCPDV consists of police units specialised on 
investigating cases of domestic violence. See: UNAMI/OHCHR, Accountability for Domestic violence in Iraq: 
Promoting justice and non-discrimination, 7 March 2024, url, p. 2 
347 UNAMI/OHCHR, Accountability for Domestic violence in Iraq: Promoting justice and non-discrimination, 7 March 
2024, url, p. 11 
348 UNAMI/OHCHR, Accountability for Domestic violence in Iraq: Promoting justice and non-discrimination, 7 March 
2024, url, p. 11; USDOS, 2023 Trafficking in Persons Report: Iraq, 15 June 2023, url; AI, Report 2022/23; The State 
of the World's Human Rights; Iraq 2022, 27 March 2023, url 

39 

EUROPEAN UNION AGENCY FOR ASYLUM 

local NGO in Baghdad and other cities.349 These underground houses often face criticism, and 
are also subjected to raids and attacks by security forces, armed actors, family and tribal 
members.350 NGO representatives reported to be ostracised,351 monitored and restricted in 
their work.352 For instance, NGOs in Baghdad have been harassed, including by being 
summoned for questioning following complaints from members of parliament.353 Women 
hosted in these shelters have reportedly received death ‘sentences’ from members of their 
tribes.354  

NGOs reported that women feared approaching the family protection units and reporting the 
crimes they faced due to fear of retaliation,355 suspecting police officers of informing their 
families. In southern Iraq, some tribal leaders reportedly banned their members from 
approaching police family protection units, claiming that domestic abuse was a family matter. 
In the KRI, there are four shelters overseen by the government and additional two shelters for 
women fleeing domestic violence run by local NGOs.356 Admission to government-run 
shelters, both in Federal Iraq and the KRI, requires a police report and a judicial order, which 
means that formal legal proceedings must be initiated against the perpetrator.357 

Sexual violence 

Iraqi law criminalises rape and sexual assault of women, men, and children.358 However, 
except for the KRI,359  it does not specifically mention spousal rape. There is no clear definition 
of ‘consent’, leaving the interpretation up to the judges.360 The penal code also permits 
perpetrators of rape or sexual assault to avoid prosecution or have their sentences supressed 
if they marry their victim.361 Sometimes families of the survivors agree with such arrangement 
to avoid social stigma associated with rape. Reliable data on the occurrence of rape and 
information on the effective enforcement of the law are not available.362  Women and girls are 
reported to be at risk of rape and other forms of sexual violence perpetrated by state and non-
state actors, also in circumstances of internal displacement and return363 and in detention.364  

349 OWFI, Sheltering, accessed 28 January 2024, url; GI-TOC, 2023 Global Organized Crime Index: Iraq, September 
2023, url, p. 6 
350 HRW, World Report 2024, Events of 2023, 11 January 2024, url; UNGA, Situation of Human Rights Defenders: 
Note by the Secretary-General, A/78/131, 7 July 2023, url, para. 82 
351 Cortright, D., et al.., Women and the Iraq war, 20 years later, Fourth Freedom Forum, 2023, url  
352 Mohammed, Y., Two decades of feminist struggle in post-invasion Iraq, Chatham House, 14 June 2023, url, p. 72 
353 AI, Report 2022/23; The State of the World's Human Rights; Iraq 2022, 27 March 2023, url 
354 Mohammed, Y., Two decades of feminist struggle in post-invasion Iraq, Chatham House, 14 June 2023, url, p. 72 
355 UNAMI/OHCHR, Accountability for Domestic violence in Iraq: Promoting justice and non-discrimination, 7 March 
2024, url, p. 10 
356 USDOS, 2022 Country Report on Human Rights Practices: Iraq, 20 March 2023, url, p. 52 
357 Ceasefire Centre for Civilian Rights, Researcher for Report on Family-Based Violence Legislation in the Kurdistan 
Region of Iraq, 2 August 2023, url, pp. 1-2 
358 USDOS, 2022 Country Report on Human Rights Practices: Iraq, 20 March 2023, url, p. 50 
359 Hardi, C., The backlash against women’s rights in Iraq’s Kurdistan region, Chatham House, 14 April 2023, url  
360 USDOS, 2022 Country Report on Human Rights Practices: Iraq, 20 March 2023, url, p. 50 
361 HRW, World Report 2024, Events of 2023, 11 January 2024, url; USDOS, 2022 Country Report on Human Rights 
Practices: Iraq, 20 March 2023, url, p. 50 
362 USDOS, 2022 Country Report on Human Rights Practices: Iraq, 20 March 2023, url, p. 50 
363 USDOS, 2022 Country Report on Human Rights Practices: Iraq, 20 March 2023, url, p. 39; UNICEF, Humanitarian 
Action for Children 2023: Iraq, 5 December 2022, url, p. 2; UNDP, Challenges for the Return and Reintegration of 
Women and Children, October 2022, url, p. 23  
364 UNPD, Affiliated with ISIS, October 2022, url, p. 56  

40 

IRAQ – COUNTRY FOCUS 

Conflict-related sexual violence 

The 2021 law for survivors of the ISIL violence365 does not include specific provisions related 
to the status of women survivors of sexual violence, nor of children born of rape.366 During 
2022, 914 families displaced by the 2014 conflict returned to their places of origin in Iraq, as 
part of the process of return of Iraqi nationals from Al Hol camp in Syria. Of these, 70 % were 
female-headed households. These women are reported to face stigma and challenges to 
reintegrate in the community.367 Members of the Yazidi communities themselves368 often 
forced Yazidi survivors who had children born of rape to leave their children behind in Syria; in 
some cases, they were forced to place them in institutional care.369 (See also 1.4 Children). 
Those who refused to leave their children behind are reported to have faced expulsion from 
the community and also honour killings.370 Yazidi women who had children born of rape are 
reported to be required by the government to register those children as Muslims and convert 
to Islam themselves to obtain identification cards, passports, and other governmental 
services.371 See also 1.1.3 Individuals with (perceived) affiliation to ISIL.  

Forced marriage 

Despite being criminalised,372 including in the KRI, the practices of traditional early and forced 
marriages of women and girls373 have continued to occur.374 The law sets the minimum age for 
marriage at 18, but it also allows a judge to permit girls as young as 15 to marry ‘if fitness and 
physical capacity are established and the guardian does not present a reasonable 
objection’375 or if the marriage is considered ‘an urgent necessity’ by the judge.376 The 
minimum age for marriage in the KRI can be lowered to 16 with approval by a legal guardian 
and authorisation by a judge.377 Unregistered marriages (conducted by religious leaders but 
not registered with the Personal Status Court),378 also called temporary379 or pleasure 
marriages (Nikah Mut’ah), have continued to be practiced with support of clerics. Such 
temporary arrangements are reported to be widely misused for sexual exploitation, 

365 UN news, Iraq: ‘Moral obligation’ to ensure justice for Yazidi and other survivors of ISIL crimes, 30 September 
2021, url 
366 USDOS, 2022 Country Report on Human Rights Practices: Iraq, 20 March 2023, url, p. 41 
367 UNSC, Conflict-related sexual violence, S/2023/413, 22 June 2023, url, para.37; Australia, DFAT, Country 
Information Report Iraq, 16 January 2023, url, p. 18 
368 New York Times (The), ISIS Forced Them Into Sexual Slavery. Finally, They’ve Reunited With Their Children, 12 
March 2021, url; Rudaw, Yezidi spiritual leaders clarify children of ISIS rape won’t be accepted, 27 April 2019, url 
369 UNSC, Conflict-related sexual violence, S/2023/413, 22 June 2023, url, para.15, 37  
370 USDOS, 2022 Report on International Religious Freedom: Iraq, 15 May 2023, url; Australia, DFAT, Country 
Information Report Iraq, 16 January 2023, url, p. 18 
371 USDOS, 2022 Report on International Religious Freedom: Iraq, 15 May 2023, url  
372 HRW, ‘Everyone Wants Me Dead’, 23 March 2022, url 
373 USDOS, 2022 Country Report on Human Rights Practices: Iraq, 20 March 2023, url, p. 61; UN Iraq, Iraq Common 
Country Analysis 2021, 26 April 2022, url, p. 18 
374 HRW, “My Marriage was Mistake after Mistake”, 3 March 2024, url, p. 12; UN Iraq, Iraq Common Country Analysis 
2021, 26 April 2022, url, p. 18 
375 USDOS, 2022 Country Report on Human Rights Practices: Iraq, 20 March 2023, url, p. 61 
376 ILHR, Legislative Review: Draft Law on Child Protection, May 2023, url, p. 9 
377 IRAQ-KRI, Amended Personal Status Law, as applicable in the KR-I (Law No. 15 of 2008), available at: url, Art. 5; 
UNFPA, Child marriage in Kurdistan Region -Iraq, 12 August 2016, url, p. 52 
378 HRW, World Report 2024, Events of 2023, 11 January 2024, url 
379 USDOS, 2022 Country Report on Human Rights Practices: Iraq, 20 March 2023, url, p. 61 

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EUROPEAN UNION AGENCY FOR ASYLUM 

prostitution,380 trafficking381 and as a way to circumvent legal restrictions on child, forced 
marriage and polygamy, or avoid paying spousal maintenance in case of divorce. The impact 
of unregistered/temporary marriages on women’s rights is described as significant. Lacking 
civil status, women in unregistered marriages face severe obstacles in accessing social 
protection and government services.382 

Although less common than unregistered marriages,383 the tribal practice of fasliya, (whereby 
women and girls are traded as part of the tribal settlement of a dispute384 ‘as compensation for 
injury or death’)385 continue to exist,386 especially in areas where tribal influence is stronger 
than government institutions.387 In 2022, Iraqi journalist Dima Yassine mentions fasliya 
customs still occurring daily in Iraq.388 Women who are subjected to fasliya have no right to 
divorce, are exposed to abuse,389 and mistreatment.390 The practice of nahwa, whereby a male 
cousin is entitled to marry his female cousin or decide on whom she can marry391 is reported to 
remain a problem, particularly in southern provinces.392 Such practices are said to be a 
‘concealed phenomenon’ that is not discussed publicly.393 For more detailed information on 
fasliya, nahwa and other practices impacting women within the context of tribal customary 
laws and practice see EUAA COI Report Iraq: Arab tribes and customary law, April 2023.394  

Female Genital Mutilation/Cutting (FGM/C) 

FGM/C has been criminalised in the KRI395 under the Domestic Violence Act in 2011 but not in 
Federal Iraq.396 Outside the KRI, FGM/C is reported as not common. While it has continued to 

380 NIRIJ-Daraj, “Pleasure Marriage:” Thinly Veiled Legal Prostitution, 24 March 2023, url  
381 UN Human Rights Committee, Concluding Observations on the 6th Periodic Report, 16 August 2022, url, para.28 
382 HRW, World Report 2024, Events of 2023, 11 January 2024, url; HRW, “My Marriage was Mistake after Mistake”, 
3 March 2024, url, pp. 1, 11, 28 
383 HRW, “My Marriage was Mistake after Mistake”, 3 March 2024, url 
384 HRW, Interview with EUAA, 13 March 2023; OWFI, Interview with EUAA, 16 March 2023; Ceasefire for Civilian 
Rights, Correspondence with EUAA, 16 March 2023, originally cited in EUAA, COI Report, Iraq: Arab tribes and 
customary law, April 2023, url; Tawfiq Marwan, M., Forced Marriages In Tribal Iraq: A Case Study From Kirkuk, May 
2019, url, p. 6-7, 18; USDOS, 2016 Country Reports on Human Rights Practices - Iraq, March 3, 2017, url, p. 52  
385 UNHCR, Tribal Conflict Resolution in Iraq, 15 January 2018, url, p. 2 
386 Genat, M., interview with EUAA, 4 October 2022; OWFI, Interview with EUAA, 13 March 2023; Ceasefire Centre 
for Civilian Rights, Correspondence with EUAA, 13 March 2023; HRW, Interview with EUAA, 16 March 2023, 
originally cited in EUAA, COI Report, Iraq: Arab tribes and customary law, April 2023, url; Yassine, D., Iraqi women: 
Resisting oppression in an afflicted country, 16 January 2022, url 
387 USDOS, 2022 Country Report on Human Rights Practices: Iraq, 20 March 2023, url, p. 54 
388 Yassine, D., Iraqi women: Resisting oppression in an afflicted country, 16 January 2022, url  
389 UNHCR, Tribal Conflict Resolution in Iraq, 15 January 2018, available at: url, p. 2; Al-Obaidi, B., Interview with 
EUAA, 3 April 2023, originally cited in EUAA, COI Report, Iraq: Arab tribes and customary law, April 2023, url 
390 USIP, Customary Justice and the Rule of Law in War-Torn Societies, 1 July 2011, url, p. 264; Al-Obaidi, B., 
Interview with EUAA, 3 April 2023 
391 Genat, M., Interview with EUAA, 4 October 2022; OWFI, Interview with EUAA, 13 March 2023, originally cited in 
EUAA, COI Report, Iraq: Arab tribes and customary law, April 2023, url 
392 USDOS, 2022 Country Report on Human Rights Practices: Iraq, 20 March 2023, url, p. 54 
393 Al-Obaidi, B., Interview with EUAA, 3 April 2023, originally cited in EUAA, COI Report, Iraq: Arab tribes and 
customary law, April 2023, url 
394 EUAA, COI Report, Iraq: Arab tribes and customary law, April 2023, url 
395 USDOS, 2022 Country Report on Human Rights Practices: Iraq, 20 March 2023, url, p. 53 
396 IILHR, Legislative Review: Draft Law on Child Protection, May 2023, url, p. 9; UN Human Rights Committee, 
Concluding Observations on the 6th Periodic Report, 16 August 2022, url, para. 38 

42 

IRAQ – COUNTRY FOCUS 

decline in the KRI,397 it is still practiced in some rural communities.398 Its prevalence in the KRI 
is reported higher in the governorates of Sulaymaniyah and Erbil (where 47 % of women aged 
between 15-49 are subjected to FGM/C), while in Dohuk it is reported as rare.399  

1.3.2.  Women without male support 

Women without the support of a male member of their family or tribe400 often face 
stigmatisation from their families and from society;401 they are vulnerable to economic 
insecurity and at a higher risk of sexual exploitation and trafficking.402 In spite of this, divorce 
rates in Iraq, including in the KRI,403 have seen an increase in recent years and divorced 
women still face stigma and discrimination,404 including risk of losing their rights to child 
custody, property rights and financial support;405 they are also exposed to economic hardship 
and sexual harassment.406 Divorced and widowed women are reported to be exposed to 
sexual exploitation also through so called temporary or pleasure marriages.407  

Women who escaped domestic violence without their legal identification documents face 
challenges in having these documents replaced. As a result, they face obstacles in registering 
for their residence card (which is required to rent a house and secure a job), obtaining birth 
certificates for their children, as well as in moving around.408 Female-headed households,409 
widows and single women410 also face additional obstacles, including legal impasses, in 
obtaining security clearance and/or documentation for themselves or their children.411 
Commonly, women without a male support continued to experience a delay of more than one 
year to obtain their own citizenship documentation.412  

397 USDOS, 2022 Country Report on Human Rights Practices: Iraq, 20 March 2023, url, p. 53 
398 Wadi, Annual Report 2022, 6 May 2023, url , p. 6; Rudaw, FGM Persists in the Kurdistan Region Despite Ban, 6 
February 2022, url  
399 Iraq/KRI, Population analysis report, February 2021, url, p. 46; FGM/C Research Initiative, Iraqi Kurdistan, n.d., url  
400 WAS Iraq, Women Working in Iraq: Shame, Control, as Part of a Working Woman’s Life, 17 August 2022, url; 
France24, In Iraq, divorce rates soar even as stigma persists for women, 19 October 2022, url; Howe K. et al., 
Circumscribed Lives: Separated, Divorced, and Widowed Female Youth in South Sudan and the Kurdistan Region 
of Iraq, Tufts University, August 2022, url, p. 11-13 
401 Howe K. et al., Circumscribed Lives: Separated, Divorced, and Widowed Female Youth in South Sudan and the 
Kurdistan Region of Iraq, Tufts University, August 2022, url, p. 23; CREID, Violence and Discrimination Against 
Women of Religious Minority Backgrounds in Iraq, 6 December 2022, url, p. 140 
402 USDOS, 2022 Country Report on Human Rights Practices: Iraq, 20 March 2023, url, pp. 72; CREID, Violence and 
Discrimination Against Women of Religious Minority Backgrounds in Iraq, 6 December 2022, url, pp. 140, 303  
403 Asharq Al-Awsat, Official Data: Divorce Rates Soar in Kurdistan, 1 March 2019, url; Kurdistan 24, Iraq records over 
6,000 divorce cases in one month, 3 April 2023, url 
404 AA, Iraq's divorce rate steadily mounting: Judicial source, 31 January 2018, url; France24, In Iraq, divorce rates 
soar even as stigma persists for women, 19 October 2022, url; USDOS, 2022 Country Report on Human Rights 
Practices: Iraq, 20 March 2023, url  
405 Al Menasa, No Waiver, no Divorce: Half of Iraqi Women Blackmailed into the Worst Deal, when Leaving 
Marriage, 31 March 2022, url  
406 Kurdistan 24, Iraq records over 6,000 divorce cases in one month, 3 April 2023, url 
407 NIRIJ-Daraj, “Pleasure Marriage:” Thinly Veiled Legal Prostitution, 24 March 2023, url; Shafaq, Temporary 
marriage in Iraq: economic pressures, legal controversies, and societal dynamics, 21 May 2023, url  
408 HRW, Trapped – Iraq, 18 July 2023, url, pp. 42-47 
409 IRC, Iraq Protection Needs Overview: Monitoring and Trends (April – September 2022), 11 January 2023, url, p. 
11; SIDA, Multidimensional Poverty Analysis Iraq 2022, April 2022, url, p. 33 
410 USDOS, 2020 Country Reports on Human Rights Practices: Iraq, 30 March 2021, url, p. 60 
411 UNDP, Challenges for the Return and Reintegration of Women and Children, October 2022, url; p. 20, DRC, 
Women, Displacement and Durable Solutions in Iraq, 8 March 2023, url  
412 USDOS, 2022 Report on International Religious Freedom: Iraq, 15 May 2023, url, p. 21 

43 

EUROPEAN UNION AGENCY FOR ASYLUM 

A significant number of returnees, who are ISIL-affiliated or perceived as such, are female-
headed households.413 Women with suspected affiliation to ISIL members are reported to have 
been routinely denied by Iraqi security officers clearance needed to obtain identity cards, 
passports, and other documents.414 Obtaining identity cards and access to services continued 
to be a problem for women with children born of rape.415 These women are also subject to 
higher risk of sexual exploitation, retaliation, and suicide.416 (See also 1.1.3 Individuals with 
(perceived) affiliation to ISIL and 1.3.2 Conflict-related sexual violence). 

Women living independently face obstacles417 due to prevailing social, religious and cultural 
norms. For instance, single women in Iraq experience difficulties trying to rent a house, since 
living alone for a woman is not socially accepted. Speaking to Human Rights Watch, some 
organisations reported that hotels do not allow adult Iraqi women to check into a room alone 
unless they are either accompanied by a male guardian (i.e. brother, father, or husband) or can 
provide an official letter from a governmental institution or NGO stating the reason for their 
stay (e.g. business, attending a conference, etc.).418 Although the situation of single women is 
described as generally better in the KRI compared to the rest of Iraq, conservative attitudes 
and traditional norms create several challenges for single women in the KRI as well, including 
difficulties in living on their own, obtaining civil documents, accessing jobs. Single women are 
also exposed to verbal and sexual harassment.419 

1.4.  Children 

Iraqi federal law420 foresees that men may discipline their wives and children ‘within certain 
limits prescribed by law or by custom’. Although reliable statistics are not available, violence 
against children is reported to be a significant problem.421 Authorities, both in Federal Iraq and 
the KRI, often treated children and adolescents who were sexually exploited and trafficked as 
criminals instead of victims, by prosecuting and sentencing some of these children for 
prostitution.422 In June 2023, the Iraqi parliament introduced a draft child protection law, 
which, if passed, would address issues such as child labour, exploitation, and abuse. While 
being described as ‘a vital step’ towards protecting children’s rights,423 some provisions of the 
draft law are said to be vague, some in contravention of the articles of the Convention on the 
Rights of the Child, with omissions also noted regarding envisioned protections, particularly 

413 Cook J., Distinguishing Children from ISIS-Affiliated Families in Iraq and their Unique Barriers for Rehabilitation 
and Reintegration, Perspective on Terrorism, Vol. XVII, Issue 3, September 2023, url, p. 58; UNSC, Conflict-related 
sexual violence, S/2023/413, 22 June 2023, url, para.37 
414 HRW, Trapped – Iraq, 18 July 2023, url, pp. 42-47 
415 UNSC, Conflict-related sexual violence, S/2021/312, 30 March 2021, url, p. 6  
416 USDOS, 2022 Country Report on Human Rights Practices: Iraq, 20 March 2023, url, p. 41 
417 WAS Iraq, Women Working in Iraq: Shame, Control, as Part of a Working Woman’s Life, 17 August 2022, url  
418 HRW, Trapped – Iraq, 18 July 2023, url, pp. 42-47 
419 Denmark DIS/DRC, Kurdistan Region of Iraq (KRI): Issues regarding single women, documents and illegal exit 
March 2023, url pp. 7-19 
420 Iraq, Penal Code, No. 111 of 1969, July 1969, url, Art. 41 (1); see footnote 312 of this report. 
421 USDOS, 2022 Country Report on Human Rights Practices: Iraq, 20 March 2023, url, p. 50 
422 USDOS, 2022 Country Report on Human Rights Practices: Iraq, 20 March 2023, url, pp. 61-62; USDOL, 2021 
Findings on the Worst Forms of Child Labor: Iraq, 28 September 2022, url, p. 6 
423 HRW, World Report 2024, Events of 2023, 11 January 2024, url 

44 

IRAQ – COUNTRY FOCUS 

for girls.424 By the time of writing, the draft law remained pending.425 Children in Iraq have 
continued to be affected by conflict-related violence, including being killed or injured by 
improvised explosive devices (IED) and explosive remnants of war (ERW).426 

1.4.1. 

Child recruitment by armed groups 

Efforts have been made by the government to prevent child recruitment.427 Nonetheless, some 
instances of child recruitment by armed groups were reported. The UN verified a total of 32 
cases of children (18 boys and 14 girls, as young as age 11) being recruited in 2022: 28 of 
whom were recruited by the People’s Defence Forces of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party 
(HPG/PKK) and 4 by ISIL. These children were used in combat and at checkpoints. The UN 
also reported some cases of abduction of children for recruitment and sexual exploitation. In 
June 2023, the UN reported to have conditionally delisted the PMF for the violation of 
recruitment and use of children. This decision was based on a decrease in this violation by 
these groups and based on pending implementation of an action plan against child 
recruitment signed by the Iraqi government, UNAMI and UNICEF.428 Young boys who were 
formerly recruited and who suffer from complex trauma or other medical conditions429 often do 
not have access to adequate rehabilitation, reintegration and mental health programmes, 
which exposes them to re-victimisation and re-recruitment.430 

1.4.2.  Children with perceived affiliation to ISIL 

Children perceived to be affiliated with ISIL are reported to be subject to arbitrary arrests, 
detention, and enforced disappearance.431 As at December 2022, UN verified that 936 
children (927 boys, 9 girls) remained in detention on national security-related charges, 
including for their actual or alleged affiliation with armed groups, mostly ISIL.432 Some of the 
children detained are as young as 9 years old,433 being 9 the minimum age of criminal 

424 IILHR, Legislative Review: Draft Law on Child Protection, May 2023, url, p. 2 
425 HRW, Iraq: Reforms Needed to Entrench Stability, 11 January 2024, url  
426 UNSC, Implementation of Resolution 2682 (2023), S/2023/700, 26 September 2023, url, para. 55; UNSC, 
Implementation of resolution 2682 (2023), S/2024/96, 25 January 2024, url, para. 58, 59  
427 OSRSG Children and Armed Conflict, UN Special Representative of Secretary-General for Children and Armed 
Conflict Concludes Official Visit to Iraq, 11 January 2024, url, p. 1  
428 UNGA/SC, Children and Armed Conflict in Iraq: Report of the Secretary-General, A/77/895-S/2023/363, 5 June 
2023, url, para. 71, 74, 76, 344 
429 SEED Foundation, Can We Build a Brighter Future for Children Exploited by War?, 9 February 2022, url; Sunday 
Times, Kidnapped, Drugged and Forced to Fight: The Forgotten Child Victims of ISIS, 16 July 2022, url  
430 GI-TOC, 2023 Global Organized Crime Index: Iraq, September 2023, url, p. 6; USDOS, 2023 Trafficking in 
Persons Report: Iraq, 15 June 2023, url 
431 IOHR, Forced Disappearances in Iraq: Around 12,000 Reports of Missing Persons in the Last Six Years, 30 
August 2023, url, p. 6; UN CED, Information on the Visit and Findings, 31 March 2023, url, paras 23, 24, 25; HRW, 
Submission to the UN Human Rights Committee, 25 January 2022, url; USDOS, 2023 Trafficking in Persons Report: 
Iraq, 15 June 2023, url; UN, Committee on Enforced Disappearances, Report of the Committee on Enforced 
Disappearances on its visit to Iraq under article 33 of the Convention, 19 April 2023, url, para. 31 
432 UNGA/SC, Children and Armed Conflict in Iraq: Report of the Secretary-General, A/77/895-S/2023/363, 5 June 
2023, url, para. 72 
433 UNDP, Challenges for the Return and Reintegration of Women and Children, October 2022, url, p. 57; UNGA/SC, 
Children and Armed Conflict in Iraq: Report of the Secretary-General, A/77/895-S/2023/363, 5 June 2023, url, para. 
72; IILHR, Legislative Review: Draft Law on Child Protection, May 2023, url, p. 22  

45 

EUROPEAN UNION AGENCY FOR ASYLUM 

responsibility in Federal Iraq (while in the KRI has been amended to 11).434 Children are 
reported to be imprisoned in overcrowded juvenile facilities,435 or, in some cases, together 
with adults.436 Children have been arrested based on ‘dubious’ evidence and forced 
confessions,437 with limited access to legal remedies, prolonged pretrial detention and 
subjected to ill-treatments.438 Children in detention on charges of ISIL affiliation in Ninewa are 
reported to experience extremely poor conditions in overcrowded prison cells.439 Although the 
use of torture is explicitly outlawed in Iraq, the disciplinary system allows for children to be 
held in solitary confinement up to seven days, and allows removal of privileges such as family 
visits. Instances of torture towards children were reported across Iraq and the KRI, in particular 
to extract confessions,440 and during criminal hearings interrogation.441  

Children, who make up the majority of the population across IDPs and returnees from Al Hol 
camp, face stigma due to their perceived association with ISIL and may face barriers in 
accessing education and other services.442 Most of these children are in fact denied access to 
civil documentation needed to access education and other services.443 See also 1.1.3 
Individuals with (perceived) affiliation to ISIL. 

Children born to Yazidi women raped by ISIL have allegedly been subjected to enforced 
disappearances upon their mothers’ return to Iraq.444 Yazidi women are reported to have often 
been forced to leave their children behind in Syria, and in some cases to place them in 
orphanages.445 A UN Delegation visiting Iraq in November 2022 was informed of cases where 
Yazidi women were not able to take their children back from orphanages, being told that their 
children had been ‘given’ to another family, with the alleged involvement of state agents. Civil 
society organisations told the UN Committee that these children are usually sold.446 By law,447 
children born to a Yazidi mother as a result of ISIL violence are considered to be of ‘unknown’ 

434 UN CAT, Concluding Observations on the Second Periodic Report of Iraq, CAT/C/IRQ/CO/2, 15 June 2022, url, 
para. 26 
435 USDOS, 2022 Country Report on Human Rights Practices: Iraq, 20 March 2023, url 
436 UNSC, Children and Armed Conflict in Iraq: Report of the Secretary-General, S/2022/46, 26 January 2022, url, 
para. 27 
437 HRW, Children as ISIS Suspects, 17 February 2022, url  
438 UNSC, Children and armed conflict in Iraq, Report of the Secretary-General, 26 January 2022, url, p. 6, para. 27 
439 HRW, Submission to the Committee Against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman, or Degrading Punishment Ahead 
of the Review of the Republic of Iraq 73rd Session: March 2022; 7 April 2022, url 
440 UNICEF, Mapping and Assessment of the Child Justice System in Kurdistan Region of Iraq, November 2022, url, 
p. 26; Freedom House, Freedom in the world 2023 Iraq (covering facts of 2022), 2023, url
441 UNAMI/OHCHR, Trials under the anti-terrorism laws and implications for justice, accountability and social
cohesion in the aftermath of ISIL, 2020), url, p. 8-9
442 United Nations University, UNIDIR, Rehabilitation and Reintegration of Children from Families with Perceived ISIL
Affiliation: Experiences from Iraq and Al Hol, url, p. 7; War on the Rocks, Living In The Shadows: Iraq’s Remaining
Displaced Families, 3 February 2022, url
443 AI, Iraq: Legacy of Terror: The Plight of Yezidi Child Survivors of ISIS, 30 July 2020, url, pp. 33-34; Rowaq Arabi,
Born of ISIS Genocide: Risk of Statelessness and Stigmatised Nationality Acquisition for Children of Yezidi
Survivors, 26 August 2020, url
444 UN CED, Report of the Committee on Enforced Disappearances on its visit to Iraq under article 33 of the
Convention, 19 April 2023, url, para. 31
445 UNSC, Conflict-related sexual violence, S/2023/413, 22 June 2023, url, para. 15, 37
446 UN CED, Report of the Committee on Enforced Disappearances on its visit to Iraq under article 33 of the
Convention, 19 April 2023, url, para. 31, 25, footnote 40
447 Iraq, National Card Law No. (3) of 2016, 2016, url, art. 20(2)

46 

IRAQ – COUNTRY FOCUS 

paternity, and they are registered as ‘Muslims’.448 In fact, most of these children are denied  
access to civil documentation.449 A local media outlet reported that, in some cases, children 
born of rape are registered on their national ID card under the name of their mother’s father or 
other male relatives from their mother’ side.450 These children are reported to be vulnerable to 
retribution or ‘honour’ killings, and to be discriminated against within the Yazidi communities, 
as Yazidis do not consider these children as belonging to their communities.451 Human Rights 
Watch researcher Sarah Sanbar said that the problem of children born of rape to Yazidi 
women enslaved or forced into marriage with ISIL fighters remains a particularly sensitive 
issue within the Yazidi community, forcing many women to choose between remaining 
displaced with their children, or returning to their families without their children.452 

1.4.3.  Children without civil documentation 

Numerous children are prevented from or face obstacles in obtaining official documents.453 
These include children born out of wedlock, of unregistered marriages,454 children born as a 
result of ISIL violence or forced marriage 455 (see 1.1.3 Civil documentation and security 
clearance), and displaced children.456 Lack of birth certificates and other key civil documents457 
limit children’s access to government services and social protection, including enrolment to 
school,458 access to healthcare, housing, employment and social safety nets.459 Additionally, 
these children face restrictions of movement,460 and are subject to stigmatisation, abuse and 

448 IBA, Justice and Accountability for the Atrocities of Daesh, 1 March 2023, url, p. 4; Save the Children, Yazidi 
Children still Living in Fear 8 Years after Genocide, 22 September 2022, url; USDOS, 2022 Report on International 
Religious Freedom: Iraq, 15 May 2023, url, p. 21 
449 AI, Iraq: Legacy of Terror: The Plight of Yezidi Child Survivors of ISIS, 30 July 2020, url pp. 33-34; Rowaq Arabi, 
Born of ISIS Genocide: Risk of Statelessness and Stigmatised Nationality Acquisition for Children of Yezidi 
Survivors, 26 August 2020, url 
450 Rudaw, Iraqi children born to ISIS fathers denied IDs, cannot enroll in school, 23 October 2022, url  
451 USDOS, 2022 Report on International Religious Freedom: Iraq, 15 May 2023, url, p. 30 
452 Sanbar S., email communication with EUAA, 16 March 2024 
453 DRC, Life in the Margins, September 2022, url, p. 3; USDOS, 2022 Country Report on Human Rights Practices: 
Iraq, 20 March 2023, url, p. 41 
454 HRW, “My Marriage was Mistake after Mistake”, 3 March 2024, url, pp. 30-31; USDOS, 2022 Report on 
International Religious Freedom: Iraq, 15 May 2023, url, p. 21; Kirkuk Now, My Name is My Mother’s, Campaign for 
Thousands of Children, 9 January 2021, url 
455 USDOS, 2022 Report on International Religious Freedom: Iraq, 15 May 2023, url, p. 21; UNSC, Conflict-Related 
Sexual Violence: Report of the Secretary-General, S/2023/413, 22 June 2023, url, para. 37; Rudaw, Iraqi Children 
Born to ISIS Fathers Denied IDs, Cannot Enroll in School, 23 October 2022, url  
456 SEED Foundation, World Children’s Day: To Establish Flourishing Communities, Today and in the Future, we 
Must Protect the Rights of every Child, 20 November 2023, url  
457 USDOS, 2022 Country Report on Human Rights Practices: Iraq, 20 March 2023, url, p. 41 
458 HRW, World Report 2024, Events of 2023, 11 January 2024, url; AI, Report 2022/23; The State of the World's 
Human Rights; Iraq 2022, 27 March 2023, url 
459 HRW, World Report 2024, Events of 2023, 11 January 2024, url; NRC, The Unmet Needs of Iraq's Children in 
Informal Settlements, September 2022, url, pp. 18-10; UNHCR, Access to Civil Documentation by IDPs and IDP 
Returnees in Iraq: 2022-2023, 24 August 2022, url, p. 1  
460 DRC, Life in the Margins, September 2022, url, p. 14; UNHCR, Access to Civil Documentation by IDPs and IDP 
Returnees in Iraq: 2022-2023, 24 August 2022, url, p. 1 

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EUROPEAN UNION AGENCY FOR ASYLUM 

abandonment.461 Children who lack birth certificates in Iraq are reported to be stateless462 or at 
risk of becoming stateless.463  

1.4.4.  Child exploitation and child marriage 

Almost half of Iraqi children (47 % or 8.7 million) are reported to live in multidimensional464 
poverty.465 In 2022, Iraq ‘made minimal advancement in efforts to eliminate the worst forms of 
child labour’, which is reported as widespread,466 and on the rise.467  Some children are 
trafficked for forced labour, including forced begging, and commercial sexual exploitation.468 
IDP and returnee children,469 undocumented children, children with disabilities,470 as well as 
children of women without male support are reported to be particularly prone to different 
forms of exploitation, including child labour, forced and/or child marriage, sexual exploitation, 
and trafficking.471  

Rates of child marriage have steadily increased over the past 20 years, exacerbating the 
exposure to sexual and domestic violence.472 Child marriage is reported to be socially 
accepted across the country,473 and instances of child marriages occur throughout Iraq among 
all ethnic and religious groups at high rates.474 According to a 2021 study by the Ministry of 

461 USDOS, 2022 Report on International Religious Freedom: Iraq, 15 May 2023, url, p. 30; UN News, New Iraqi Law 
‘Major Step’ in Assisting ISIL’s Female Victims but more Must Be Done, 21 April 2021, url  
462 USDOS, 2022 Country Report on Human Rights Practices: Iraq, 20 March 2023, url, p. 41 
463 UNSC, Conflict-Related Sexual Violence: Report of the Secretary-General, S/2022/272, 29 March 2022, url, 
para. 33; UNDP, Challenges for the Return and Reintegration of Women and Children, October 2022, url, p. 19; 
UNHCR, Access to Civil Documentation by IDPs and IDP Returnees in Iraq: 2022-2023, 24 August 2022, url, p. 1 
464 The World Bank defines the Multidimensional Poverty Measure (MPM) as ‘an index that measures the 
percentage of households in a country deprived along three dimensions –monetary poverty, education, and basic 
infrastructure services – to capture a more complete picture of poverty. A means to capture the complexity of 
poverty that considers dimensions of well-being beyond just monetary poverty.’ See World Bank, Multidimensional 
Poverty Measure, n.d., url 
465 UN Iraq, Iraq Common Country Analysis 2023, January 2024, p. 20, cited in UNHCR, International Protection 
Considerations with Regards to People Fleeing Iraq, 30 January 2024, url, p. 73 footnote 524; UNICEF, Country 
Office Annual Report 2022, 15 February 2023, url, pp. 1, 6 
466 USDOL, 2022 Findings on the Worst Forms of Child Labor: Iraq, 26 September 2023, url, pp. 568-569 
467 IRC, High Child Labor Rates in Iraq Continue to Disrupt Children’s Education, Childhood and Basic Rights, the 
IRC Warns, 23 December 2022, url; i24 News, Poverty, War in Iraq Causes Sharp Spike in Child Labor, 1 March 
2023, url; Rudaw, Over 1,000 Children Working in Sulaimani, Halabja Provinces: KRG Minister, 12 June 2023, url; 
France24/AFP, Wars, Poverty Fuel Spike in Iraqi Child Labour, 1 March 2023, url  
468 USDOS, 2023 Trafficking in Persons Report: Iraq, 15 June 2023, url; EPC, Iraqi Children, Crisis of Conflict, and 
the Dysfunctional Education System, 6 July 2022, url; USDOL, 2021 Findings on the Worst Forms of Child Labor: 
Iraq, 28 September 2022, url  
469 IRC, Protection Needs Overview April 2023 – September 2023, 10 December 2023, url, pp. 8-10 
470 USDOS, 2023 Trafficking in Persons Report: Iraq, 15 June 2023, url  
471 CREID, Violence and Discrimination Against Women of Religious Minority Backgrounds in Iraq, 6 December 
2022, url, pp. 51-52, 384; Howe K. et al., Circumscribed Lives: Separated, Divorced, and Widowed Female Youth in 
South Sudan and the Kurdistan Region of Iraq, Tufts University, August 2022, url, p. 23; USDOS, 2023 Trafficking in 
Persons Report: Iraq, 15 June 2023, url 
472 HRW, World Report 2024, Events of 2023, 11 January 2024, url 
473 WVI, Empowered Women, Empowered Children, April 2022, url, p. 27 
474 UN Iraq, Iraq Common Country Analysis 2023, January 2024, p. 24, cited in UNHCR, International Protection 
Considerations with Regards to People Fleeing Iraq, 30 January 2024, url, p. 162 footnote 1164; HRW, World Report 
2024, Events of 2023, 11 January 2024, url 

48 

IRAQ – COUNTRY FOCUS 

Planning and the Central Statistical Organization, 25.5 % of married women in Iraq were 
married before the age of 18, and 5.2 % of women were married before 15.475 

1.4.5.  Access to education 

Primary education enrolment in Iraq stands at over 90 %, but enrolment rates in intermediate 
and higher education levels are significantly lower.476 Almost 3.2 million school-aged children 
are reported to be out of school in Iraq, including approximately half of all displaced 
children.477 There are several barriers faced by Iraqi children in accessing education, including 
lack of sufficient educational facilities, use of schools as shelters by IDPs, costs of 
transportation and supplies, displacement.478 Access to education is effectively impeded to 
children lacking civil documentation,479 children forced to work,480 children with disabilities.481 
Girls face additional barriers in accessing education due to socio-cultural norms,482 while girls 
forced into marriage are de facto excluded from accessing education.483 In some conflict-
affected areas, access to education for children is further hampered by continued insecurity484 
as well as reported destruction of schools and other infrastructure485 and use of schools for 
military purposes by armed groups.486 See also 1.1.3 Individuals with (perceived) affiliation to 
ISIL. 

1.5.  LGBTIQ 

Consensual same-sex relations between adults are not expressly prohibited by the Iraqi Penal 
Code.487 However, the authorities have used a range of vaguely worded provisions to 
discriminate against and criminally prosecute lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, intersex and 

475 Iraq CSO/KRSO, Iraqi Women Integrated Social and Health Survey (IWISH2), 1 April 2021, url, p. 9 
476 UN Iraq, Iraq Common Country Analysis 2023, January 2024, pp. 10, 24, cited in UNHCR, International 
Protection Considerations with Regards to People Fleeing Iraq, 30 January 2024, url, p. 83 footnote 610; UNICEF, 
Iraq: Country Office Annual Report 2022, 7 March 2023, url, p. 2  
477 IOM, IOM Welcomes Decisions by Directorates of Education in Salah al Din and Ninewa to Protect Children’s 
Right to Education, 27 February 2022, url; IRC, Protection Needs Overview April 2023 – September 2023, 10 
December 2023, url, p. 13  
478 USDOL, 2022 Findings on the Worst Forms of Child Labor: Iraq, url, p.568 
479 AI, Report 2022/23; The State of the World's Human Rights; Iraq 2022, 27 March 2023, url; DRC, Life in the 
Margins, 14 September 2022, url, p. 15  
480 USDOL, 2022 Findings on the Worst Forms of Child Labor: Iraq, url, pp. 568-569 
481 Mercy Hands, Rapid Assessment: Understanding the Funding Challenges, Education Needs and Aspirations of 
Institutes for Children with Disabilities in Basra, Iraq – November 2022, 16 January 2023, url, p. 4 
482 IRC, Protection Needs Overview April 2023 – September 2023, 10 December 2023, url, p. 10; WVI, Empowered 
Women, Empowered Children, April 2022, url, p. 27; UNDP, Community-Based Reconciliation & Reintegration in 
Iraq, 28 June 2022, url, p. 18; CREID, Violence and Discrimination Against Women of Religious Minority 
Backgrounds in Iraq, 6 December 2022, url, pp. 51, 107, 118, 182, 238-239 
483 Stites E., et al.., Life after Marriage: An Analysis of the Experiences of Conflict-Affected Female Youth who 
Married under Age 18 in South Sudan and the Kurdistan Region of Iraq, Tufts University, 23 May 2022, url, p. 10; 
Manara Magazine, ‘With Education you Can Face Every Struggle’: Gendered Higher Education in Iraq and Iraqi 
Kurdistan – Part One: Living in Darkness, 21 February 2022, url  
484 Rudaw, Fearing ISIS, Dozens of Kurdish Schools Remain Shut in Makhmour, 24 October 2022, url  
485 The Kurdish Centre for Studies, SOS: Turkey is destroying Rojava’s civilian infrastructure, 14 October 2023, url  
486 UNGA/SC, Children and Armed Conflict in Iraq: Report of the Secretary-General, A/77/895-S/2023/363, 5 June 
2023, url, para. 75; HRW, Iraq: Political Infighting Blocking Reconstruction of Sinjar, 6 June 2023, url 
487 Iraq, Penal Code, No. 111 of 1969, July 1969, url  

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EUROPEAN UNION AGENCY FOR ASYLUM 

queer individuals (LGBTIQ), on grounds such as public indecency and prostitution.488  In 
August 2023, a draft amendment to Iraq’s Anti-Prostitution Law (Law No. 8 of 1988) was 
introduced,489 foreseeing the criminalisation of  consensual same sex relations with the death 
penalty or life imprisonment,490 ‘promoting homosexuality’ with a minimum seven years in 
prison and a fine and ‘imitating women’ with up to a three-year sentence.491 The law was 
passed by the Iraqi parliament on 27 April 2024.492 

In August 2023, the Iraqi Communications and Media Commission issued a directive ordering 
all media outlets to replace the term ‘homosexuality’ with the term ‘sexual deviance’, and 
banning the use of the term ‘gender’.493 In September 2022, members of the Kurdistan 
regional parliament had introduced the ‘Bill on the Prohibition of Promoting Homosexuality,’ 
which, if passed, would punish any individuals or groups advocating for LGBTIQ rights.494 

Both men and women face harassment, abuse by family members or state actors, and 
detention for not conforming to traditional appearance or behaviour that is perceived to match 
their biological sex.495 For instance, in September 2023, blogger Noor Al Saffar was killed by 
an unknown gunman, likely due to Al Saffar’s social media posts dressed in women’s 
clothing.496 Sources noted an escalation of anti-LGBTIQ sentiments,497 with violence and 
discrimination against LGBTIQ individuals498 described as ‘rampant’.499 In a 2022 report, 
Human Rights Watch documented killings, abductions, torture, and sexual violence against 
LGBTIQ individuals perpetrated by armed groups in Iraq.500 Armed actors and law 
enforcement officers have perpetrated violence with impunity towards LGBTIQ individuals.501 

488 HRW, Iraq: Scrap Anti-LGBT Bill, 23 August 2023, url; HRW, ‘Everyone Wants Me Dead’, 23 March 2022, url, p. 3 
489 UNSC, Implementation of Resolution 2682 (2023): Report of the Secretary-General, S/2023/700, 26 September 
2023, url, para. 17 
490 UN OHCHR, Iraq: UN Human Rights alarmed by draft law with death penalty for same-sex relations, 9 February 
2024, url 
491 HRW, Iraq: Scrap Anti-LGBT Bill, 23 August 2023, url 
492 Reuters, Iraq criminalises same-sex relationships with maximum 15 years in prison, 27 April 2024, url ; AP, 

Passage of harsh anti-LGBTQ+ law in Iraq draws diplomatic backlash, 28 April 2024, url 

493 HRW, Iraq: Scrap Anti-LGBT Bill, 23 August 2023, url; AI, Iraq: Authorities must immediately reverse media ban 
on the terms “homosexuality” and “gender”, 9 August 2023, url 
494 HRW, Iraq: Scrap Anti-LGBT Bill, 23 August 2023, url  
495 Freedom House, Freedom in the World 2023 – Iraq (covering facts of 2022), 2023, url  
496 GCHR, GCHR’s 30th Periodic Report on Human Rights Violations in Iraq, 9 November 2023, url; Sanbar S., email 
communication with EUAA, 16 March 2024 
497 ABC News, Iraq's LGBT Community Could Face Death Penalty under Proposed New Law, 16 September 2023, 
url; Freedom House, Freedom on the Net 2023: Iraq, 4 October 2023, url; AP, Influential Iraqi cleric launches anti-
LGBTQ campaign, 2 December 2022, url 
498 OutRight International, What it Means to Be a Queer Woman, 23 February 2022, url, p. 20  
499 HRW, Iraq: Impunity for Violence Against LGBT People, 23 March 2022, url  
500 HRW, ‘Everyone Wants Me Dead’, 23 March 2022, url, pp. 1-4 
501 HRW, Iraq: Scrap Anti-LGBT Bill, 23 August 2023, url; HRW, Iraq: Impunity for Violence Against LGBT People, 23 
March 2022, url 

50 

IRAQ – COUNTRY FOCUS 

1.6.  Individuals perceived as transgressing moral and 

religious norms 

As a result of clan customs and tribal traditions, abuses and killings within the Iraqi society 
occur on grounds of ‘the wash of shame’.502 Mostly women,503 and to a lesser extent men,504 
can be subjected to honour-based killings, being perceived to have transgressed cultural, 
social or religious norms, and brought shame to their family.505 (See also 1.3.1 Domestic and 
honour-based violence). Sources reported attacks against people perceived to contravene 
these rules due to dress506 or social behaviour,507 as well as converts,508 members of religious 
minority groups,509 atheists and secular-minded individuals,510 LGBTIQ individuals.511 People 
contravening gender roles through dress or same-sex relationships are considered to have 
damaged honour of family and tribe,512 violated national values, and promoted ‘moral decay’.513 
An intensified anti-LGBTIQ campaign has been carried out by the government since 2023, 
based on the argument – among others – that LGBTIQ issues are an import from Western 
countries.514 (See also 1.5 LGBTIQ).  

Tribal actors committing honour-based violence are reported to be allowed to act with 
impunity in Iraq, not only when it comes to women’s issues but in general.515 A US-based Iraq 
analyst told the EUAA that this is also the case in the KRI, where political connections can, in 
practice, provide impunity to perpetrators of tribal or clan violence. Also, in the KRI 

502 Al-Obaidi, B. S. H., The impact of legislation on empowering women. A comparative study between the effective 
Iraqi Penal Code No. 111 of 1969 and the new draft Iraqi Penal Code, Journal of Positive School Psychology, Vol. 6 
No. 2, 2022, url, p. 6146 
503 Ceasefire Centre for Civilian Rights, Correspondence with EUAA, 16 March 2023; OWFI, Interview with EUAA, 16 
March 2023, originally cited in EUAA, COI Report, Iraq: Arab tribes and customary law, April 2023, url; Australia, 
DFAT, Country Information Report Iraq, 16 January 2023, url, p. 30 
504 UNHRC, Report of the Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions on her mission to 
Iraq, 5 June 2018, url, para. 40; Ceasefire Centre for Civilian Rights/MRGI, The Lost Women of Iraq: Family-based 
violence during armed conflict, October 2015, url, p. 26; Rudaw, Trans Woman Killed by Brother, Perpetrator Flees 
Country, 2 February 2022, url 
505 AI, Report 2022/23; The State of the World's Human Rights; Iraq 2022, 27 March 2023, url; Hamoudi, H. A et al., 
The Resolution of Disputes in State and Tribal Law in the South of Iraq, 2015, url; p. 240; Australia, DFAT, Country 
Information Report Iraq, 16 January 2023, url, pp. 30-31 
506 LBC, Shocking Footage Shows Male Mob Attacking Girl, 17, for Dressing ‘Immodestly’ at Iraqi Motorcycle Show, 
4 January 2023, url 
507 DW, Iraqi Kurdistan: 16 Arrested after Video of Girl's Assault, 31 December 2022, url 
508 Al-Samaraie, N., Interview with EUAA, 27 October 2022, originally cited in EUAA, COI Report, Iraq: Arab tribes 
and customary law, April 2023, url; Open Doors, Iraq: Full Country Dossier, January 24, 2022, url, pp. 24, 31 
509 Open Doors International, World Watch List 2024: Iraq, January 2024, url, pp. 1-8; USDOS, 2022 Report on 
International Religious Freedom: Iraq, 15 May 2023, url CREID, Violence and Discrimination Against Women of 
Religious Minority Backgrounds in Iraq, 6 December 2022, url, pp. 185, 297 
510 Australia, DFAT, Country Information Report Iraq, 16 January 2023, url, p. 22; DW, When Atheism is Life-
Threatening, 20 December 2018, url; AP, Fearing ostracism or worse, many nonbelievers hide their views in the 
Middle East and North Africa, 5 October 2023, url  
511 HRW, ‘Everyone Wants Me Dead’, 23 March 2022, url, p. 21 
512 HRW, ‘Everyone Wants Me Dead’, 2022, url, pp. 70-72; Sanbar S., email communication with EUAA, 16 March 
2024 
513 Al Jazeera, As Iraq Backslides on Gender Equality, Where Are Its Women MPs?, 9 September 2023, url  
514 DW, Iraq debates law on death penalty for same-sex relationships, 7 September 2023, url 
515 Alshamary, M., Interview with Al Jazeera, The Stream, Why hasn’t Iraq adopted any laws against domestic 
violence?, 15 February 2023, url , minutes 1:19 - 1:37; 8:38 – 9:50 

51 

EUROPEAN UNION AGENCY FOR ASYLUM 

increasingly more people are reported to solve their issue through tribal justice mechanism.516 
(For more information on the impact of Iraqi tribal customary laws and practices on certain 
groups and individuals see EUAA COI Report Iraq: Arab tribes and customary law, April 2023). 

In January 2023, an online platform was launched by the Iraqi government for monitoring and 
reporting ‘indecent content’ on social media517 that, according to authorities, ‘violates public 
morals, customs and traditions, and is disrespectful towards military institutions’, and 
‘undermines the values of the Iraqi family.’518 However, researcher at Human Rights Watch, 
Sarah Sanbar, informed EUAA that the platform was blocked a few months after its launch and 
that it remains blocked by the time of drafting this report.519 Media sources reported that, soon 
after the platform was launched, 14 people were charged for publishing ‘indecent’ or ‘immoral’ 
content on social media, six of whom were already sentenced to prison terms ranging 
between six months to two years.520 Among those targeted for violating public moral and 
decency521 were people who posted videos of music deemed provocative (such as TikTok pop 
music influencers),522 dance moves, modelling fashion clothes,523 comedy and sarcastic 
commentary, language deemed obscene, or raised sensitive social issues such as gender-
related topics.524  Sources noted that such crackdown is part of a broader campaign by the 
government to repress dissent,525 especially among a more secular-minded young generation 
which tries to defy traditional norms of Iraqi conservative society. In some neighbourhoods of 
the capital Baghdad, for instance, it is possible to see some young Iraqi men and women 
wearing jeans and sneakers, listening to music, taking music or dance classes. These 
individuals are however reported to be wary of criticism or targeting by conservative sections 
of society or militias connected to political parties.526 The ban of the term ‘gender’ and the 
order to replace the term ‘homosexuality’ with the term ‘sexual deviance’ in August 2023527 
has reportedly had an impact on the work of academics and staff at humanitarian 
organisations. Some gender-studies courses at universities had to be suspended, while NGO 
workers have been warned to avoid using the term in their activities.528  

516 US-based Iraq analyst, Interview with EUAA 12 December 2023, and email communication 4 March 2024 
517 AI, Iraq: Open Letter to Prime Minister Al-Sudani: End Iraq’s Reign of Impunity, 15 March 2023, url  
518 Iraqi New Agency, Ministry of Interior: Forming a committee to monitor content on social media, 16 January 
2023, url  
519 Sanbar S., email communication with EUAA, 16 March 2024 
520 AI, Iraq: Open Letter to Prime Minister Al-Sudani: End Iraq’s Reign of Impunity, 15 March 2023, url  
521 Library of Congress, Iraq: Authorities Arrest Two Social Media Creators for Indecency and Publishing 'Degrading 
Content' on TikTok, 9 January 2024, url  
522 France24/AFP, TikTokers jailed as Iraq targets 'decadent content', 16 February 2023, url  
523 New York Times, As Iraq Tries to Chill Critics, Its Newest Target Is Social Media, 16 July 2023, url; Article 19, Iraq: 
Authorities must cease their chilling crackdown on free speech, 3 March 2023, url  
524 AP, Iraq’s crackdown on booze, social media posts raises alarm, 10 March 2023, url  
525 New York Times (The), As Iraq Tries to Chill Critics, Its Newest Target Is Social Media, 16 July 2023, url  
526 AP, 20 years after U.S. invasion, young Iraqis see signs of hope, 17 March 2023, url; Guardian (The), Baghdad’s 
young people battle to build happier future – picture essay, 12 May 2023, url 
527 HRW, Iraq: Scrap Anti-LGBT Bill, 23 August 2023, url; AI, Iraq: Authorities must immediately reverse media ban 
on the terms “homosexuality” and “gender”, 9 August 2023, url 
528 Al Jazeera, As Iraq Backslides on Gender Equality, Where Are Its Women MPs?, 9 September 2023, url  

52 

IRAQ – COUNTRY FOCUS 

1.6.1. 

Individuals selling/consuming alcohol 

As of March 2023, Iraq’s government announced it would start enforcing529 a 2006 law 
banning alcohol530 which prohibits the import, sale, and manufacture of all alcoholic 
beverages.531 Under Islamic law, alcohol is proscribed in Iraq and licenses to sell alcohol have 
only been issued to non-Muslims. While drinking in public is not prohibited,532 it is said to be 
frowned upon.533 In most areas of Iraq, including in the KRI, selling, buying and consuming 
alcohol is widely seen as immoral. The charge of being an alcohol seller attaches a stigma to 
someone, by reason even of ethnic or religious identity. However, ‘quite a lot of Iraqis’ are said 
to consume alcohol.534 For instance, on the banks of the Tigris River in the capital Baghdad, it 
is not unusual to see young people drinking alcohol.535 The enforcement of the ban raised 
concerns among many residents in the city of Baghdad and among minority groups,536 as the 
majority of shops selling alcohol are owned by members of religious minorities.537 (See also  
1.2 Ethnic and religious minorities). Prior to the enforcement of the ban, attacks targeting 
alcohol selling shops were reported.538 According to ACLED, since 2020 there has been an 
escalation of attacks against alcohol store sellers by PMF militias. Between October 2021 and 
February 2022, over 35 attacks mostly involving the targeting of liquor stores with IEDs were 
recorded.539 Sabean-Mandeans, Yazidis, and Christians who own stores with alcohol sales 
licenses reported being blackmailed and attacked by PMF militias.540  

Following the enforcement of the ban in March 2023, local sources reported that a number of 
liquor shops were raided and forced to close, with owners arrested in central Baghdad.541 
Except for the KRI, which has not enforced the ban, prohibition of alcohol import was reported 
to be enforced at border crossings, however many liquor stores across Iraq are said to 
continue business as usual.542 In March 2024, a US-based Iraq analyst informed the EUAA that 
alcohol was widely available in the KRI, but also in Federal Iraq despite the 
restrictions.543 Similarly, Sarah Sanbar, researcher at HRW, told the EUAA that both in the KRI 
and in Baghdad alcohol shops as well as restaurants selling alcohol were still open and 
serving alcohol by the time of drafting this report. The same source additionally stated that, 
prior to the enforcement of the alcohol ban, it was common, in rural or less urban areas, for 

529 AP, Iraq’s crackdown on booze, social media posts raises alarm, 10 March 2023, url; BBC, Iraq Alcohol Ban: 
Christian Political Party Appeals, Saying it Is Undemocratic, 6 March 2023, url 
530 AP, Iraqi parliament passes bill banning alcohol, 23 October 2016, url; BBC, Iraq Alcohol Ban: Christian Political 
Party Appeals, Saying it Is Undemocratic, 6 March 2023, url 
531 Rudaw, Alcohol ban worries locals in Baghdad, 18 May 2023, url  
532 Reuters, Iraq starts enforcing 2016 ban on alcoholic beverages -document, 6 March 2023, url  
533 Lattimer, M., originally cited in EASO COI Report, Targeting of Individuals, March 2019, url, p. 85; Reuters, Iraq 
starts enforcing 2016 ban on alcoholic beverages -document, 6 March 2023, url  
534 Lattimer, M., originally cited in EASO COI Report, Targeting of Individuals, March 2019, url, p. 85 
535 Reuters, Iraq starts enforcing 2016 ban on alcoholic beverages -document, 6 March 2023, url  
536 AP, Iraq’s crackdown on booze, social media posts raises alarm, 10 March 2023, url  
537 Rudaw, Alcohol ban worries locals in Baghdad, 18 May 2023, url 
538 Hatha Alyoum, Liquor Depot Blasted in Al-Diwaniyah, 16 June 2022, url; NINA, Explosion of a Shop Selling 
Alcoholic Drinks in the Tourist Resort of Babylon, 11 June 2022, url; NINA, Unidentified Persons Demolished a Store 
for Selling Alcoholic in Diwaniyah,13 April 2022, url  
539 ACLED, The Muqawama and its Enemies, 23 May 2023, url  
540 USDOS, 2022 Report on International Religious Freedom: Iraq, 15 May 2023, url, p. 20 
541 NINA, A Number of Violating Liquor Store Owners Arrested in Central Baghdad, 28 March 2023, url; Rudaw, 
Nearly 200 arrested in raid on Baghdad gambling halls, 18 April 2023, url 
542 AP, Iraq’s crackdown on booze, social media posts raises alarm, 10 March 2023, url  
543 US-based Iraq analyst, Interview with EUAA 12 December 2023, and email communication 4 March 2024 

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EUROPEAN UNION AGENCY FOR ASYLUM 

alcohol vendors to ask for one’s ID, as they would only sell to those whose ID does not have 
‘Muslim’ listed on it. However, the source did not have any information on whether this has 
changed following the enforcement of the ban. Sanbar further added that the ‘general feeling 
is that the ban was enacted as political theatre rather than a serious desire to ban alcohol’.544 

1.6.2.  Converts and atheists 

Besides being prohibited under the Personal Status Law,545 religious conversion from Islam to 
Christianity or other religions is socially taboo in Iraq, and ill-perceived by society and tribal 
groups.546 A study outsourced by the organisation Joint Initiative for Strategic Religious Action 
(JISRA) showed that, due to the strong connection between ethnic affiliation and religion, 
atheism can be perceived as a ‘denial of ethnic identity’.547 (See also 1.2 Ethnic and religious 
minorities). Although conversion does occur in Iraq, converts opt to hide their conversion to 
Christianity or any other religion. Converts might be expelled from the territory upon decision 
of tribal leaders, sometimes with support of their own family;548 they might face challenges in 
seeking a job, buy/rent an apartment or deal with authorities, for instance in obtaining 
documentations and certificates.549 Converts from Muslim background experience pressure,550 
ostracism and discrimination,551 especially from family and community members.552 The KRI in 
particular saw an increase in reports of women killed by male relatives, including for reasons 
such as converting to a different religion.553 An expert on Iraqi tribes told the EUAA that 
converting from one religion to any other is ‘a red line’ for all tribes in Iraq, be it from Islam to 
Christianity or Christianity to Islam: ‘from the perspective of religion, it provides a permission to 
kill since the person has become an infidel. This is the general code among all the tribes, 
among all ethnicities and all religions.’554 (For more information on the treatment of Muslim 
converts within the context of Arab tribes see EUAA COI Report Iraq: Arab tribes and 
customary law, April 2023). If suspected of carrying out outreach among Muslims, Christian 
converts might be accused of blasphemy. Violations against converts are reported to be more 
prevalent in Arab than Kurdish areas.555 

Harassment and violence against atheists by family members, religious and militia groups are 
reported to occur.556 Agnostics, atheists and non-believers generally do not publicly disclose 

544 Sanbar S., email communication with EUAA, 16 March 2024 
545 USDOS, 2022 Report on International Religious Freedom: Iraq, 15 May 2023, url, p. 6; Freedom House, Freedom 
in the World 2023 – Iraq (covering facts of 2022), 2023, url; Open Doors International, World Watch List 2024: Iraq, 
January 2024, url, p. 7 
546 Al-Samaraie, N., Interview with EUAA, 27 October 2022, originally cited in EUAA, COI Report, Iraq: Arab tribes 
and customary law, April 2023, url, p. 72; Open Doors, Iraq: Full Country Dossier, January 24, 2022, url, p. 24, 31 
547 JISRA, JISRA in Iraq, August 2022, url, p. 3 
548 Al-Ibrahimi, H., Interview with EUAA, 27 October and 3 November 2022, originally cited in EUAA, COI Report, 
Iraq: Arab tribes and customary law, April 2023, url, p. 73 
549 Finland, FIS, Kristityt, ateistit ja islamista luopuneet Irakissa, May 18, 2022, url, p. 16  
550 Open Doors International, World Watch List 2024: Iraq, January 2024, url, pp. 3, 4, 6 
551 RFI, Country Overview Iraq, March 2023, url, p. 4 
552 Open Doors International, World Watch List 2024: Iraq, January 2024, url, pp. 3, 4, 6; RFI, Country Overview Iraq, 
March 2023, url, p. 4; 
553 AI, Report 2022/23; The State of the World's Human Rights; Iraq 2022, 27 March 2023, url 
554 Al-Ibrahimi, H., Interview with EUAA, 3 November 2022, originally cited in EUAA, COI Report, Iraq: Arab tribes 
and customary law, April 2023, url, p. 74 
555 Open Doors International, World Watch List 2024: Iraq, January 2024, url, p. 3 
556 DW, When Atheism is Life-Threatening, 20 December 2018, url; Australia, DFAT, Country Information Report 
Iraq, 16 January 2023, url, p. 18 

54 

IRAQ – COUNTRY FOCUS 

their believes due to stigma from society and out of fear of being targeted557 by family 
members, vigilantes and conservative and hardline religious groups.558 Despite the lack of 
officials statistics, atheism is reported to be on the rise in Iraq.559  

1.6.3. 

Individuals in inter-sect/inter-faith marriages 

Reliable figures on the prevalence of mixed marriages are not available.560 Notwithstanding 
exceptional cases, marriages between Sunni and Shia Muslims are reported to be common 
and not controversial in Iraq, especially in demographically mixed areas like the capital 
Baghdad.561 In areas that experienced continued tensions between Sunnis and Shias (e.g. in 
Tal Afar, in the Ninewa governorate),562 mixed marriages among these communities may not 
be accepted. For instance, in the Ninewa Plains inter-sect marriages are reported to be no 
longer accepted due to the tension between Shia and Sunni Shabaks, as a result of ISIL’s 
targeting of Shia Shabaks.563 Intolerance towards inter-sect/inter-faith marriage might also 
occur in circumstances when one spouse is a member of a tribe with perceived affiliation to 
ISIL, or perceived ‘honour’ violations (such as the perception that the couple engaged in sex 
prior to wedlock, or if they marry in violation of their families’ wishes). Muslim women marrying 
non-Muslim men risk stigmatisation, exclusion, and, in extreme cases, honour killing if they 
proceed with the marriage against their families’ wishes.564 In situations where families do not 
approve inter-faith marriage (e.g. between a Muslim and a Christian or a Sunni and a Shia), 
both men and women might be subjected to honour killings, although women are more likely 
to be victim of this practice. In some cases, it is also possible that a clan or a tribe will punish a 
member (especially a woman) for engaging in a mixed marriage, for instance by expelling the 
person from the tribe.565 Some minority communities, including Sabean-Mandeans566 and 
Yazidis, do not permit their members to marry outside their faith, with repercussions against 
those breaking the religious norms,567 including stigmatisation, exclusion, and, in extreme 

557 Freedom House, Freedom in the World 2023 – Iraq (covering facts of 2022), 2023, url; AP, Fearing ostracism or 
worse, many nonbelievers hide their views in the Middle East and North Africa, 5 October 2023, url;  
558 Humanists International, Iraq, last updated 28 October 2020, url; Arab Weekly, Iraq’s Growing Community of 
Atheists no Longer Peripheral, 20 July 2019, url; DW, When Atheism is Life-Threatening, 20 December 2018, url; 
USCIRF, Country Update Iraq, September 2023, url, p. 3 
559 Graczyk, A., Atheism and the Changing Image of Islam in Iraq, Review of Nationalities, nr 10/2020, 18 May 2021, 
url, p. 174; USCIRF, Country Update Iraq, March 2022, url, p. 2 
560 US-based Iraq analyst, email communication to EUAA, 4 March 2024; Sanbar S., email communication to EUAA,  
16 March 2024 
561 BBC, 'Sushi' children defy Sunni-Shia divide, 18 June 2016, url; Canada, IRB, Iraq: Inter-Sect Marriage Between 
Sunni and Shia Muslims, Including Prevalence; Treatment of Inter-Sect Spouses and their Children by Society and 
Authorities, Including in Baghdad; State Protection Available (2016-January 2018), 29 January 2018, url  
562 Action Against Hunger, Drivers of Conflict and Community Tensions in Post-War Iraq, 5 May 2023, url, p. 12 
563 SIPRI, Post-Conflict Reconstruction in the Nineveh Plains of Iraq: Agriculture, Cultural Practices and Social  
Cohesion, November 2022, url, p. 20; Action Against Hunger, Conflict sensitivity assessment in Ninewa, 27 January 
2023, url 
564 Sanbar S., email communication with EUAA, 16 March 2024 
565 Lattimer, M., originally cited in EASO COI Meeting Report – Iraq, 25-26 April 2017, url, p. 24; Canada, IRB, Iraq: 
Inter-Sect Marriage Between Sunni and Shia Muslims, Including Prevalence; Treatment of Inter-Sect Spouses and 
their Children by Society and Authorities, Including in Baghdad; State Protection Available (2016-January 2018), 29 
January 2018, url  
566 CREID, Violence and Discrimination Against Women of Religious Minority Backgrounds in Iraq, 6 December 
2022, url, pp. 160, 167 
567 JISRA, JISRA in Iraq, August 2022, url, p. 3; Manara Magazine, Addressing the Challenges Facing Iraq’s Yazidi 
Community in 2022, 17 March 2022, url  

55 

EUROPEAN UNION AGENCY FOR ASYLUM 

cases, honour killing. 568 According to Al-Samaraie, an expert on tribes in Iraq, there are cases 
of Christian women who marry Muslim men who have been banished by their families due to 
social pressure.569 (See also 1.2 Ethnic and religious minorities).  

568 Sanbar S., email communication with EUAA, 16 March 2024 
569 Al-Samaraie, N., Interview with EUAA, 27 October 2022, originally cited in EUAA, COI Report, Iraq: Arab tribes 
and customary law, April 2023, url 

56 

IRAQ – COUNTRY FOCUS 

2.

Key socio-economic indicators for
Baghdad and Sulaymaniyah

2.1.  Country overview 

1.1.1. 

Socio-economic situation 

Iraq is experiencing rapid population growth, with an estimated population of 43 million in 
2023 and predictions of a population surge to 74.5 million by 2050.570 After the sharp 
recession caused by the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, Iraq’s economy rapidly recovered in 
2022 thanks to increase in oil-selling, resulting in accelerated GDP growth.571 In the first 
quarter of 2023, GDP growth however decelerated to 2.6 %.572 Iraq is economically one of the 
most oil‑dependent countries in the world, with its national revenue heavily reliant on selling 
oil.573 This makes its economy vulnerable to fluctuations of oil prices and global demand.574 
Corruption and inequality in the distribution of national income in oil economy575 are 
considered among the country’s main problems and the root causes for political, social and 
economic issues which have fuelled several anti-government protests.576  

Unemployment577 and poverty are high across the country and large sections of the 
population.578 According to latest available data, in 2021, Iraq's unemployment rate was 16.5 %, 
with a higher rate among women (28.2 %) compared to men (14.7 %). Youth unemployment 
rate stood at 35.8 %.579  The lack of job opportunities, especially among young people, has 
been a frequent trigger for social unrest580 and migration.581 

570 UN Iraq, Iraq Common Country Analysis 2023, January 2024, p. 10 cited in UNHCR, International Protection 
Considerations with Regards to People Fleeing Iraq, 30 January 2024, url, p. 67, footnote 473 
571 World Bank, Iraq Economic Monitor, Spring/Summer 2023, 31 July 2023, url, pp. ix-x, 1; IMF, Iraq: 2022 Article IV 
Consultation-Press Release; and Staff Report, 3 February 2023, url , p. 5 
572 World Bank, Iraq Economic Monitor, Spring/Summer 2023, 31 July 2023, url, pp. ix-x, 1 
573 ISPI, Iraq’s Economy: Old Obstacles and New Challenges, 17 March 2023, url; Qardaghi O., The unequal 
distribution of income within an oil economy - Iraq as a case study, CFRI, 18 January 2023, url  
574 ECFR, From Shock and Awe to Stability and Flaws: Iraq’s Post-Invasion Journey, 25 May 2023, url 
575 AP, Corruption, Deep Disparity Mark Iraq’s Oil Legacy post-2003, 24 March 2023, url; Prospect, Iraq: The 
Fallout, 1 March 2023, url  
576 Qardaghi O., The unequal distribution of income within an oil economy - Iraq as a case study, CFRI, 18 January 
2023, url 
577 World Bank, Iraq Economic Monitor, Spring/Summer 2023, 31 July 2023, url, p. 2 
578 ISPI, Iraq’s Economy: Old Obstacles and New Challenges, 17 March 2023, url; UNSC, Implementation of 
Resolution 2631 (2022): Report of the Secretary-General, S/2023/340, 11 May 2023, url, para. 64  
579 ILO/CSO/KRSO, Iraqi Labour Force Survey 2021, 5 July 2022, url, pp. 6, 15 
580 ILO, Cost of Inaction: Education Deprivation in Iraq and the Potential of Social Protection to Reverse it, 7 March 
2023, url, p. 7; RFI/AFP, Iraq's Young Covet Govt Jobs in Headache for Economy, 2 October 2022, url; UNDP, 
Reimagining the Social Contract in Iraq, 12 June 2022, url, pp. 17, 19 
581 Rudaw, Kurdistan Region’s Youth Blame Lack of Opportunities for Desire to Migrate, 6 September 2023, url; 
Euronews/AFP, Scarred by War, Young Iraqis Describe the Twenty Years after ‘Shock and Awe’, 25 March 2023, 
url; CFRI, The Root Causes of Kurdish Iraqi Migration: Early Warnings of an Impending Youth Quake in the KRI, 13 
July 2022, url; WFP, Prospects for Resilience amid Fragility: Conflict Analysis of Al-Qurna and Al-Dair Districts in 
Basra Governorate, March 2022, url, p. 6 

57 

EUROPEAN UNION AGENCY FOR ASYLUM 

A country highly dependent on food imports,582 Iraq has continued to significantly rely on 
import of rice, wheat, and flour to supply citizens with subsidised food from the Public 
Distribution System (PDS).583 Due to the devaluation of the Iraqi dinar in December 2020, 
prices for some imported essential foods rose.584 Along with the poor rainfall season of 2020-
2021,585 the Ukraine-Russia war has exacerbated the food security situation in Iraq, being the 
two countries key suppliers of food, energy, and agricultural inputs globally.586 As of 1 August 
2023, 1.2 million people in Iraq were living with insufficient food consumption and 2.5 million 
were in a situation of ‘crisis or above crisis level food-based coping strategies.’587 The 
governorates with the highest prevalence of insufficient food consumption, in order of 
severity, were: Anbar, Najaf, Salah al-Din, Baghdad, Basrah, Kerbala, Muthanna, Babil, Dahuk, 
Ninewa, Thi-Qar, Kirkuk.588 

Due to a range of factors, including primarily corruption, underinvestment and neglect by the 
government589 - as well as pressure caused by rapid population growth,590 and the effect of 
climate change591 - access to basic services such as clean water, electricity, healthcare and 
education is deemed insufficient.592 In June 2023, Iraq’s parliament approved its largest 
budget till date ($153bn) aimed at improving services, rebuilding war-damaged infrastructure 
and creating public sector jobs.593 Despite these efforts, as a result of the economic and 
political situation, as well as weak governance and corruption,594 reconstruction has been 
uneven.595 

582 World Bank, Iraq Economic Monitor, Fall 2019, url, p. 22; WFP, Iraq Market Monitor, March 2022, url, p. 2 
583 USDA, Grain and Feed Annual Iraq, 18 May 2023, url, p. 1 
584 WFP, Iraq Annual Country Report 2020: Country Strategic Plan 2020-2024, 20 April 2021, url, p. 7; FAO et al.., 
Food Security in Iraq: Impact of COVID-19, with a Special Section on Water Shortages and Adaptation, 3 October 
2021, url, p. 28 
585 WFP, Iraq; Annual Country Report 2022; Country Strategic Plan 2020 – 2024, 31 March 2023, url  
586 WFP, Iraq Market Monitor, March 2022, url, p. 1 
587 The Hunger Map Live by the Word Food Programme (WFP) tracks core indicators of acute hunger. As noted by 
the WFP: ‘Acute hunger is measured by key indicators such as household food consumption, livelihood behaviors, 
child nutritional status, mortality, access to clean drinking water and other contextual factors. The HungerMap LIVE 
primarily tracks trends on household food consumption, consumption-based coping and livelihood changes to 
track multiple aspects of food insecurity. As these are outcome level 1 indicators in the Integrated Food Security 
Phase Classification (IPC) Framework, they can provide early indications of potential shifts in acute food insecurity.’. 
WFP, Hunger Map Live: Iraq insight and key trends, 1 August 2023, url, p. 1  
588 WFP, Hunger Map Live: Iraq insight and key trends, 1 August 2023, url, p. 2 
589 Mansour R., Rethinking Political Settlements in the Middle East and North Africa, Chatham House, 20 September 
2023, url, pp. 17-18; UNDP, Reimagining the Social Contract in Iraq, 12 June 2022, url, pp. 24-25 
590 UN Iraq, Iraq Common Country Analysis 2023, January 2024, p. 10 cited in UNHCR, International Protection 
Considerations with Regards to People Fleeing Iraq, 30 January 2024, url, p. 67, footnote 473 
591 UNICEF, 2024 Humanitarian Action for Children, December 2023, url, p. 2; Kirkuk Now, Nawjul Deserted for 
Poor Services and Effects of Climate Change, 15 January 2024, url 
592 UN Iraq, Iraq Common Country Analysis 2023, January 2024, p. 16, cited in UNHCR, International Protection 
Considerations with Regards to People Fleeing Iraq, 30 January 2024, url, p. 67, footnote 471; UNSC, 
Implementation of Resolution 2631 (2022): Report of the Secretary-General, S/2023/340, 11 May 2023, url, para. 64; 
Mansour R., Rethinking Political Settlements in the Middle East and North Africa, Chatham House, 20 September 
2023, url, pp. 17-18 
593 Al Jazeera, Iraq approves record $153bn budget aimed at creating jobs, 12 June 2023, url; EPC, Iraq Passes 
New Budget, but Old Problems Persist, 18 July 2023, url  
594 Washington Institute, What Could Iraqis Gain from Their Oil Windfall?, 18 November 2022, url; UN Iraq, Iraq 
Common Country Analysis 2022, 27 July 2022, url, p. 27 
595 UNICEF, Humanitarian Action for Children 2024: Iraq, 12 December 2023, url, p. 2; Kurdistan 24, Iraq’s President 
Pledges Reconstruction in Nineveh, 28 December 2022, url; IOM, No Way Home: An Assessment of Barriers to 
Sustainable Return and Reintegration in Locations of No Return, June 2022, url  

58 

IRAQ – COUNTRY FOCUS 

The Iraqi public healthcare system has severely deteriorated over the past two decades and 
has continued to be largely in crisis, facing a range of serious challenges, including 
widespread corruption and poor governance. The quality and efficiency of the healthcare 
system as well as the accessibility to basic services remain poor and inadequate for most 
Iraqis, and especially for those economically marginalised.596  Along with the poor quality of 
medical services, major issues include also recurring shortages of medications,597 as well as 
the lack of medical equipment,598 and the lack of qualified health workers.599 Not all damaged 
or destroyed public health facilities in areas affected by conflict have been rehabilitated.600  

Free public health services are only available for those holding valid civil documentation,601 
with limited access for those not holding ID documents.602 A survey by REACH found, 
however, that there is no relationship between missing civil documentation and access to 
healthcare services, with the vast majority of households surveyed (94 %) reporting to be able 
to access healthcare facilities irrespective of their civil documentation status.603 The quality 
and availability of healthcare in the KRI is slightly better than in the rest of Iraq,604 however 
much of the capacity is concentrated in urban areas.605 Due to budget deficits at times health 
worker salaries have been delayed, with implications on the provision of medical services.606 

Primary education enrolment in Iraq stands at over 90 %, but enrolment rates in intermediate 
and higher education levels are significantly lower.607 Illiteracy rates remain high in Iraq,608 
especially among women.609 Overcrowded classrooms, insufficient number of qualified 

596 Istepanian R., Mapping Iraq's Post-2003 Health Crisis: Two Decades of Retrogression and Kleptocracy, 31 
January 2024, CFRI, url; The National, Iraq’s Fragmented Healthcare System ‘at the Heart of the Struggle to 
Overcome War’, 2 December 2022, url; UN Iraq, Iraq Common Country Analysis 2023, January 2024, p. 40, cited in 
UNHCR, International Protection Considerations with Regards to People Fleeing Iraq, 30 January 2024, url, p. 80 
footnote 581  
597 Mansour R., Moving Medicine in Iraq: Networks Fuelling Everyday Conflict, Chatham House, 29 November 2022, 
url; MSF, MSF Halts Key Medical Activities in Mosul Due to Administrative Obstacles, 5 July 2023, url; KAS, Under 
Fire: How Corruption Erodes Healthcare in Iraq, December 2021, url, p. 9  
598 Qamar K., et al.., Rise of Cholera in Iraq: A Rising Concern, in: Annals of Medicine and Surgery, Vol. 81 (2022), 
September 2022, url, p. 2  
599 UN Iraq, Iraq Common Country Analysis 2023, January 2024, p. 41, cited in UNHCR, International Protection 
Considerations with Regards to People Fleeing Iraq, 30 January 2024, url, p. 80 footnote 586; The National, Staff 
Shortages Threaten Iraq's Health Sector amid Third Covid-19 Wave, 2 February 2022, url  
600 MSF, Iraq Activity Report 2022, 13 April 2023, url, p. 13; UNFPA, Iraq: Reproductive and Maternal Health, 
accessed 14 March 2024, url  
601 UN Iraq, Iraq Common Country Analysis 2021, 26 April 2022, url, p. 72 
602 NRC, The Unmet Needs of Iraqi’s Children in Informal Settlements, September 2022, url, pp. 17-19 
603 REACH, Missing Civil Documentation in Iraq: Who, Why & How Important is it? February 2023, url, p. 12 
604 Australia, DFAT, Country Information Report Iraq, 16 January 2023, url, p. 8; Sulaiman H. M., et al.., Health 
System Performance, Mitigation, and Imperative Reform Approaches in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq, Vol. 17 Issue 1, 
2023, url, pp. 91-93 
605 Sulaiman H. M., et al.., Health System Performance, Mitigation, and Imperative Reform Approaches in the 
Kurdistan Region of Iraq, Vol. 17 Issue 1, 2023, url, pp. 91-93  
606 Rudaw, Patients, Students, Civil Servants Lose in Erbil, Baghdad Money Row, 17 September 2023, url; Arab 
News, AFP, Iraqi Kurds Protest Unpaid Salaries from Baghdad, 5 September 2023, url; New Arab, Iraqi Kurdistan 
Doctors, Teachers, and Garbage Collectors Go on Strike over Unpaid Salaries, 7 March 2022, url  
607 UN Iraq, Iraq Common Country Analysis 2023, January 2024, pp. 10, 24, cited in UNHCR, International 
Protection Considerations with Regards to People Fleeing Iraq, 30 January 2024, url, p. 83 footnote 610; UNICEF, 
Iraq: Country Office Annual Report 2022, 7 March 2023, url, p. 2 
608 UN Iraq, Iraq Common Country Analysis 2023, January 2024, p. 24, cited in UNHCR, International Protection 
Considerations with Regards to People Fleeing Iraq, 30 January 2024, url, p. 83, footnote 611 ; Shafaq News, 
Illiteracy Rate in Iraq Drops to 12.3%: Official, 4 December 2023, url  
609 UNFPA, Iraqi Women Integrated Social and Health Survey: Summary of Key Findings, June 2022, url, p. 5  

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EUROPEAN UNION AGENCY FOR ASYLUM 

teachers, damaged school facilities are among the main issues affecting the education system 
in Iraq. Many schools have to operate on a shift system (with two or three shifts) to 
accommodate students, impacting the quality of education.610 

Despite being one of the world’s largest oil producers,611 Iraq struggles with shortages in fuel 
supply.612 Due to conflict and lack of maintenance and investment, Iraq’s electricity system has 
been damaged613 and power outages across the country occur frequently,614 especially during 
the summer.615 Power cuts have often triggered protests, especially in the poorer southern 
governorates.616  

Iraq suffers from a housing supply shortage.617 In 2020, it was estimated that 12.9 % of the 
population (over 3 million people) lived in informal settlements.618 The presence of over 
252 500 Syrian refugees in the KRI has contributed to further pressure on public services and 
infrastructure.619 As of December 2023, the IDP population in Iraq stood at over 1,14 million. 
Most IDPs are situated in Erbil governorate (19 %), followed by Dohuk governorate (12 %), 
Ninewa and Sulaymaniyah districts (8 %).620 Sources noted that damaged homes along with 
lack of livelihoods and basic services continue to represent barriers to the sustainable return 
of the remaining IDPs.621  

Dirty and unsafe water is a major health threat at country level,622 with 90% of Iraq's rivers said 
to be polluted, and 7 million people currently facing reduced access to water.623 Iraq is 
projected as the world’s fifth most vulnerable country to climate change. In the past two 
decades, Iraq has faced some of the worst drought conditions in its history.624 In southern Iraq, 
in particular, communities have increasingly experienced water shortages, affecting access to 
services and causing displacement. The climate crisis and the ongoing water shortage625 are 

610 UN Iraq, Iraq Common Country Analysis 2023, January 2024, p. 45, cited in UNHCR, International Protection 
Considerations with Regards to People Fleeing Iraq, 30 January 2024, url,, p. 84, footnote 615 
611 World Bank, Iraq Economic Monitor, Spring/Summer 2023, 31 July 2023, url, pp. ix-x 
612 GI-TOC, Smuggling, subsidies and shortages: Iraq’s latest oil troubles, 10 February 2023, url 
613 UN Iraq, Iraq Common Country Analysis 2021, 26 April 2022, url, p. 50 
614 AGSIW, Urgent Reforms Needed to Unlock Iraq’s Green Potential, 14 November 2023, url 
615 CSIS, Powering Recovery, March 2023, url, p. 15  
616 Near East Policy Forum, Solar Solutions to Power Outages in Energy-Rich Iraq, 2 March 2023, url  
617 IRIS, Iraq, Economic Review, Vol. 2 (3), October 2022, url, pp. 10-11; Zawya, Iraq Has 3 Million House Supply 
Shortage, 20 September 2023, url; Zawya, Iraq Needs 4mln New Houses: Official, 15 August 2023, url; Shafaq, Real 
Estate in Iraq: Greedy Officials, Corrupt Investors, and Homeless Citizens, 3 February 2023, url 
618 UN Habitat, Informal Settlements in the Arab Region, February 2020, url, p. 36 
619 UNHCR, Iraq Factsheet: August 2023, 13 September 2023, url, p. 2; UNHCR, Syria Regional Refugee Response: 
Iraq, updated 31 December 2023, url  
620 UNCHR/DTM, Iraq - Population Profile - Breakdown Overview - IDPs and Returnees, 29 January 2024, url  
621 IOM, No Way Home: An Assessment of Barriers to Sustainable Return and Reintegration in  
Locations of No Return, 19 June 2022, url, p. 5; UNICEF, Humanitarian Action for Children 2024: Iraq, 12 December 
2023, url, p. 2  
622 France24/AFP, Rampant water pollution threatens Iraq's shrinking rivers, 21 February 2024, url  
623 UNAMI, Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Iraq Ms. Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert, 18 May 2023, 
available at url  
624 USAID, Sustainable Solutions to Combat Climate Change in Iraq, 12 Marc 2023, url; World Bank, Iraq - Country 
Climate and Development Report, November 2022, url , p. x 
625 UNICEF, 2024 Humanitarian Action for Children, 12 December 2023, url, p. 2 

60 

 
IRAQ – COUNTRY FOCUS 

considered among the most serious challenges faced by the country,626 impacting the 
agriculture sector,627 the general livelihood,628 triggering migration to urban areas,629 as well as 
creating conditions for further inequalities and civil unrest. 630 

Certain groups within the Iraqi society, including IDPs, returnees, women and girls (especially 
female-headed households),631 children,632 elderly people,633 persons with disabilities,634 and 
other marginalised groups remain particularly vulnerable and often socio-economically 
disadvantaged.635 Individuals who do not hold identity or civil documentation face restrictions 
in freedom of movement, in accessing basic services and social security benefits, and are at 
higher risk of being arbitrarily arrested.636 Individuals with perceived affiliation to ISIL also face 
additional administrative and security barriers to accessing civil documentation.637 See also 
(1.1.3 Individuals with (perceived) affiliation to ISIL and 1.4 Children). 

2.1.2. 

Entry, residency requirements and access to civil 
documentation and services  

As noted by UNHCR, the legal framework for entry and residency requirements in Iraq is 
complex and regulated by legal pluralism. Additionally, regulations are not always 
implemented, and practices vary depending on locations and implementing authorities. 
Generally, sponsorship and other security clearance requirements are not regulated by law 
nor are they officially announced.638  

626 SIPRI, Iraq in 2023: Challenges and Prospects for Peace and Human Security, 17 March 2023, url; Varoujan K., et 
al.., The Impact of Water Scarcity on Food Security in Iraq, Journal of Civil Engineering and Architecture 17, 2023, 
url, pp. 442-443; World Bank, Iraq - Country Climate and Development Report, November 2022, url, p. X-XII; SIDA, 
Multidimensional Poverty Analysis Iraq 2022, April 2022, url, p. 4 
627 UN Iraq, Iraq Common Country Analysis 2023, January 2024, p. 22, cited in UNHCR, International Protection 
Considerations with Regards to People Fleeing Iraq, 30 January 2024, url, p. 66, footnote 477  
628 IOM, Iraq Crisis Response Plan 2024, last updated 30 January 2024, url; USAID, Sustainable Solutions to 
Combat Climate Change in Iraq, 12 March 2023, url 
629 Shafaq, Iraq's agricultural landscape: Overcoming challenges amid water scarcity, 31 January 2024, url  
630 World Bank, Iraq - Country Climate and Development Report, November 2022, url , p. X-XII 
631 UN OCHA, Iraq Humanitarian Transition Overview 2023, 27 February 2023, url, p. 9; DRC, Women, 
Displacement and Durable Solutions in Iraq, 8 March 2023, url  
632 UNICEF, 2024 Humanitarian Action for Children, 12 December 2023, url, p. 2; UNICEF / International Labour 
Organization (ILO), On this World Day Against Child Labour, ILO and UNICEF Call for Joint Work among all 
Stakeholders to Create a Protective and Inclusive Environment for Children in Iraq, 12 June 2022, url  
633 Dorcas, Falling Through the Cracks: Older People in Conflict Situations, June 2022, url, pp. 15-16  
634 UN Iraq, Statement of the United Nations Resident Coordinator on the International Day of Persons with 
Disabilities, 3 December 2023, url 
635 UN Iraq, Iraq Common Country Analysis 2023, January 2024, p. 59, cited in UNHCR, International Protection 
Considerations with Regards to People Fleeing Iraq, 30 January 2024, url, 70, footnote 494 
636 UNHCR, Iraq Factsheet: August 2023, 13 September 2023, url, p. 3; UN OCHA, Iraq Humanitarian Transition 
Overview 2023, 27 February 2023, url, p. 9; DRC, Life in the Margins, September 2022, url, p. 14 
637 Geneva Graduate Institute, Legal Documentation for Persons Living under the Control of Non-State Armed 
Groups: Humanitarian Needs and Responses, 2 December 2022, url, p. 24; UNHCR, Ability of Iraqis to Legally 
Access and Settle Durably in Proposed Areas of Internal Relocation, November 2022, url, pp. 8-9 
638 UNHCR, Ability of Iraqis to Legally Access and Settle Durably in Proposed Areas of Internal Relocation, 
November 2022, url, p. 2; UNHCR, email communication with EUAA, 8 May 2024 

61 

 
 
 
EUROPEAN UNION AGENCY FOR ASYLUM 

In order to pass checkpoints and be admitted to the area they intend to enter, individuals are 
required to hold valid civil documentation (i.e. Civil Status ID card/Unified ID card, nationality 
certificate, or passport639). Security screenings in the country remain in place at governorate, 
district, and city entrance checkpoints.640 The risk of being arbitrarily detained and arrested at 
checkpoints increases for people who do not hold such documentation.641 UNHCR informed 
that most governorates / districts in Federal Iraq and the KRI do not impose entry 
requirements.. However, a sponsor is still required to enter Nasiriyah City (Thi-Qar); Haditha, 
Al-Qaim and Heet (Anbar); Al-Daur, Samarra and Balad (Salah Al-Din), Al-Saadiyah Sub-District, 
northern Muqdadiyah District and villages located in the north of Al-Udhim Sub-District (Diyala) 
and in ethnically mixed areas of Ninewa, including Tal Afar, Hamdaniyah and Sinjar Districts. 
The sponsorship requirement in practice means that the individuals need to know someone in 
the area they intend to enter, who is a resident of that area (i.e., the sponsor needs to have a 
Housing Card issued in the area) and who is willing to guarantee that the individual does not 
pose a security risk.642 

For individuals to obtain residency in a certain area, valid documents (Civil Status ID 
card/Unified ID card, nationality certificate) are required.643 Furthermore, a sponsor holding a 
Housing Card from the area where the individuals are seeking to legally take up temporary 
residency is required in some governorates and cities. These are: Diyala; Dohuk; Haditha and 
Heet Districts and Rawa Sub-District (Anbar), and all of the southern governorates. In Baghdad 
and in Al-Qaim District (Anbar), two sponsors are required.644 Further, the individuals – 
regardless of their profile or origin – need approval from the security actors of the area where 
they are to relocate, normally from the Ministry of Interior Intelligence Department in Federal 
Iraq and the Asayish in the KRI.645 

UNHCR stressed the fact that, while Iraqis can temporarily regularise their stay by registering 
with the local authorities and security actors, only the Housing Card, transferred to or issued in 
the location where they are to stay, allows the individual or family to permanently settle and 

639 As reported by UNHCR: Key documentation includes: Civil Status ID card (CSID); Nationality Certificate; Unified 
ID card (UNID, substituting both the CSID and the nationality certificate); birth certificate; and Public Distribution 
System (PDS) card for food assistance. A combination of these documents is required to access basic services and 
exercise fundamental human rights. Often one document is a prerequisite for issuing or renewing the other 
documents. Normally, civil documentation has to be issued in the place of origin, i.e. in the area in which an 
individual’s CSID or UNID has been issued. The requirement of in-person presence in the area of origin is partly 
addressed through ad hoc mobile missions undertaken by the Ministry of Interior and Civil Affairs Directorates to 
reach IDPs in camps and some informal sites/urban areas. UNHCR, email communication with EUAA, 8 May 2024; 
For information on the various types of Iraqi official documents and procedures on how to access them see also 
Simaet Bhatha, Iraqi Official Identification Documents: What are they and how do I get them?, last updated 15 March 
2023, url  
640 UNHCR, Ability of Iraqis to Legally Access and Settle Durably in Proposed Areas of Internal Relocation, 

November 2022, url, p. 4 

641 DRC, Life in the Margins, September 2022, url, p. 14; UNOCHA, 2022 Humanitarian Needs Overview: Iraq, March 
2022, url, p. 28 
642 UNHCR, email communication with EUAA, 8 May 2024 
643 UNHCR, Ability of Iraqis to Legally Access and Settle Durably in Proposed Areas of Internal Relocation, 
November 2022, url, p. 6; UNHCR, email communication with EUAA, 8 May 2024 
644 UNHCR, email communication with EUAA, 8 May 2024 
645 UNHCR, Ability of Iraqis to Legally Access and Settle Durably in Proposed Areas of Internal Relocation, 
November 2022, url, p. 12; UNHCR, email communication with EUAA, 8 May 2024 

62 

IRAQ – COUNTRY FOCUS 

access the full range of rights and basic services,646 such as health, education, food rations 
through the PDS, obtaining/renewing civil documentation, exercising the right to vote, 
accessing employment, entering formal rent agreements and buying property.647 

The Housing Card (or Residence Card, in Arabic: bitaqa al-sakan) is an official document used 
in both Federal Iraq and in the KRI that certifies an individual’s place of domicile or residency. 
The Housing Card shows the address where the head of household rents or owns a 
residence.648 Individuals or head of households who intend to transfer their Housing Card to a 
new location or to obtain the issuance of a new Housing Card need to meet a set of 
administrative and documentary requirements, in accordance with Ministry of Interior 
Instructions on the Housing Card (2018). In practice, the implementation of these instructions 
can vary.649 As reported by UNHCR, such requirements are the following:  

‘a) Requirements for the transfer of the Housing Card to the new location 

• Approval from the Housing Information Office in the former place of residency to
transfer the individual’s records to the new place of residency and deactivate the
Housing Card in the former place of residency. This approval is not granted if there
is an ongoing investigation or an arrest warrant against the individual or any family
member; 

• An application form signed and stamped by the mukhtar (or local council or mayor)

•

in the new place of residency; and
The approval from the concerned security actor/s in the new location, normally the
Ministry of Interior Intelligence Department (Federal Iraq) or the Asayish (KR-I),
respectively.

b) Requirements for the first-time issuance of the Housing Card in the new location

• Proof of residency or support letter from the mukhtar (or the local council or mayor)
in charge of the neighbourhood in which the head of household seeks to reside. In
Diyala and the Southern governorates, this proof of residency or support letter
needs to be signed by one sponsor and in Baghdad by two sponsors, and certified
by the mayor’s office. In Dohuk and Sulaymaniyah Governorate, endorsement of
the mayor’s office is also required. In Kirkuk, there is no need for a sponsor, but
instead a letter confirming that the head of household is no longer resident in the
former place of residency needs to be obtained from the mukhtar or local council
and endorsed by the local police in the former place of residency; and

646 UNHCR, Ability of Iraqis to Legally Access and Settle Durably in Proposed Areas of Internal Relocation, 
November 2022, url, pp. 6-7; UNHCR, email communication with EUAA, 8 May 2024 
647 UNHCR, Ability of Iraqis to Legally Access and Settle Durably in Proposed Areas of Internal Relocation, 
November 2022, url, p. 7; UNHCR, email communication with EUAA, 8 May 2024 
648  UNHCR, Ability of Iraqis to Legally Access and Settle Durably in Proposed Areas of Internal Relocation, 
November 2022, url, p. 1, footnote 3;  DRC, Life in the Margins, September 2022, url, p. 12; UNHCR, email 
communication with EUAA, 8 May 2024 
649 UNHCR, Ability of Iraqis to Legally Access and Settle Durably in Proposed Areas of Internal Relocation, 
November 2022, url, p. 7; UNHCR, email communication with EUAA, 8 May 2024 

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EUROPEAN UNION AGENCY FOR ASYLUM 

• Approval from the concerned security actor(s) in the new location, normally the
Ministry of Interior Intelligence Department (Federal Iraq) or the Asayish (KR-I),
respectively.

c) Documents required for the transfer/issuance of the Housing Card

• Original CSID and nationality certificate or UNID for all family members;
• Approval letter from the local police department;
• Original Housing Card or, in case of first-time issuance, copy of the Housing Card

in which the individual’s name was included (e.g., father’s Housing Card);

• Marriage contract in case of first-time issuance;
• A rental contract or house ownership deed from the new location; and
• At times, other documents such as the PDS card are also required.’ 650

Once all requirements are met, the Housing Card will be transferred or issued within 10 to 14 
days. However, the process might take longer for some individuals who can be subjected to 
additional scrutiny checks. These include single men, especially Sunni Arabs and Sunni 
Turkmen from formerly ISIL-held or conflict-affected areas.651 

There are several obstacles that can prevent individuals from obtaining the Housing Card in 
the location where they intend/are to reside. These include:  

•

•

•

•

lack of documentation and inability to renew or replace it (reissuing lost or expired
identity documents or transferring the Housing Card itself generally requires that the
individual returns to their place of origin; some individual may not be able to return to
their area of origin, including for fear of being targeted or for lack of documentation
needed to pass checkpoints);
difficulties in obtaining security clearance (for instance for individuals who are on a
wanted list on ground of affiliation to ISIL, as well as for individuals who are perceived
to have ISIL affiliation based on similar surnames with people on wanted list);652
family composition: single men and women normally are included in their father’s
Housing Card and cannot obtain the Housing Card in their name in the new location;
political reasons related to the status of the disputed territories and to demographics.
For instance, in Kirkuk City, the transfer of the Housing Card is generally not permitted
because of the city’s disputed status. Also, in the KRI, people with certain profiles or
originating from certain areas are not allowed to transfer their Housing Card or to
obtain a new Housing Card (these include, in Erbil and Dohuk: Arabs, Turkmen and
members of ethnic/religious minority groups from areas outside the KRI; in

650 UNHCR, Ability of Iraqis to Legally Access and Settle Durably in Proposed Areas of Internal Relocation, 
November 2022, url, pp. 7-8; UNHCR, email communication with EUAA, 8 May 2024 
651 UNHCR, Ability of Iraqis to Legally Access and Settle Durably in Proposed Areas of Internal Relocation, 
November 2022, url, p. 8; UNHCR, email communication with EUAA, 8 May 2024 
652 UNHCR, Ability of Iraqis to Legally Access and Settle Durably in Proposed Areas of Internal Relocation, 
November 2022, url, pp. 8-9; UNHCR, email communication with EUAA, 8 May 2024 

64 

IRAQ – COUNTRY FOCUS 

Sulaymaniyah: single Arab and Turkmen men and women,653 also Kurds and Yazidis 
originating from the disputed territories).654 

2.2.  Baghdad 

 Entry, residency requirements and access to civil 

2.2.1. 
documentation and services 

Baghdad does not impose sponsorship requirements for entering the governorate.655 

Residency requirements are in place for individuals who do not originate from Baghdad 
governorate, regardless of their ethno-religious profile. Such requirements are the following: 

Two sponsors from the neighbourhood where the individuals intend to reside.

•
• A support letter from the mukhtar (or the local council or mayor).
•

The individuals need to be accompanied to the mukhtar by the two sponsors. The
support letter by the mukhtar does not need to be renewed nor does it need to specify
period of validity. Costs for the issuance of such letter vary between 2 000 and 5 000
circa Iraqi Dinars, depending on the mukhtar.
• Security clearance from the security actors.656

Individuals who meet all these requirements are generally able to regularise their residency in 
Baghdad, to rent an apartment, to access employment, public and private hospitals (however, 
they cannot access public healthcare centres in their neighbourhood) as well as tertiary 
education.657 

For individuals to be able to access the full range of rights and basic services, they are 
required to either transfer from the previous location or obtain a new Housing Card to the new 
location where they are to reside in Baghdad, (on requirements and procedure to obtain the 
Housing Card (see 2.1.2 Entry, residency requirements and access to civil documentation and 
services). The Housing Card gives individuals full access to services, including primary 
healthcare provided by public healthcare centres in their neighbourhood and access to 
primary and secondary education. Furthermore, they can transfer their civil status records to 
Baghdad and subsequently obtain/renew the Civil Status ID Card/Unified ID Card in the new 
place of residency. 658 

653 UNHCR, Ability of Iraqis to Legally Access and Settle Durably in Proposed Areas of Internal Relocation, 
November 2022, url, pp. 8-9; UNHCR, email communication with EUAA, 8 May 2024 
654 UNHCR, Ability of Iraqis to Legally Access and Settle Durably in Proposed Areas of Internal Relocation, 
November 2022, url, p. 13; UNHCR, email communication with EUAA, 8 May 2024 
655 UNHCR, Ability of Iraqis to Legally Access and Settle Durably in Proposed Areas of Internal Relocation, 
November 2022, url, p. 44; UNHCR, email communication with EUAA, 8 May 2024 
656 UNHCR, Ability of Iraqis to Legally Access and Settle Durably in Proposed Areas of Internal Relocation, 
November 2022, url, pp. 4, 84; UNHCR, email communication with EUAA, 8 May 2024 
657 UNHCR, Ability of Iraqis to Legally Access and Settle Durably in Proposed Areas of Internal Relocation, 
November 2022, url, p. 104; UNHCR, email communication with EUAA, 8 May 2024 
658 UNHCR, Ability of Iraqis to Legally Access and Settle Durably in Proposed Areas of Internal Relocation, 
November 2022, url, p. 104; UNHCR, email communication with EUAA, 8 May 2024 

65 

EUROPEAN UNION AGENCY FOR ASYLUM 

2.2.2.  Economy 

Baghdad, the capital of the country and capital of Baghdad governorate,659 is a densely 
populated city, with a population projected at approximately 9 million in 2022.660 The majority 
of the population is composed of Sunni and Shia Arabs; other ethno-religious groups include 
Christians, Sunni and Shia Kurds, Sunni and Shia Turkmen. The city’s displaced population is 
composed mainly of Sunni Arabs.661  Baghdad is one of the wealthiest and most economically 
diverse areas of the country, with oil refining representing its main economic activity.662 
Baghdad is also the centre of commerce, banking and finance,663 as well as a manufacturing 
hub, with economic activities including production of textiles, cement, leather, carpets and 
tobacco products.664 Various military industries are also located in Baghdad.665 With its 
international airport, the capital serves as an important trading centre in the region. 
Furthermore, the city attracts more than one million tourists each year.666 After the sharp 
recession caused by the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, Iraq’s economy rapidly recovered in 
2022 thanks to increase in oil-selling, resulting in accelerated GDP growth.667 Baghdad city’s 
development is described as reviving.668 Government investments have been directed at 
improving water and electricity services in some neighbourhoods, constructing bridges and 
redesigning street.669 A boom in real estate670 is unfolding in the city, which, however, is 
reported to be fuelled by corruption and money laundering.671  

2.2.3.  Employment 

In Baghdad governorate, the unemployment rate was at 13.5 %,672 while youth unemployment 
rate stood at 15 %.673 Youth not in education, employment or training (NEET) in Baghdad was at 
17.5 % for men and 48.1 % for women.674 

659 Bahry L. & Marr P., A.. Baghdad, Encyclopedia Britannica, 10 February 2024, url 
660 Iraq, CSO, يناثلا بابلا 2022ـ2023 ةيئاصحلاا ةعومجملا [Statistical Collection 2022-2023, Part Two], 21 August 2023, url, 
p. 8
661 IOM, Cities as Home: Location Factsheets and Case Studies of Local Integration, 6 January 2021, url, p. 39
662 Jiyad, S. et al.., Economic Drivers of Youth Political Discontent in Iraq: The Voice of Young People in Kurdistan,
Baghdad, Basra and Thi-Qar, February 2021, url, p.26
663 NCCI, Baghdad Governorate Profile, updated December 2015, url, p. 2
664 Jiyad, S., et al.., Economic Drivers of Youth Political Discontent in Iraq: The Voice of Young People in Kurdistan,
Baghdad, Basra and Thi-Qar, February 2021, url, p. 26; Rawabet Center for Research and Strategic Studies, Economy
of the largest cities of Iraq “Baghdad”, 4 October 2018, url
665 Jiyad, S., et al., Economic Drivers of Youth Political Discontent in Iraq: The Voice of Young People in Kurdistan,
Baghdad, Basra and Thi-Qar, February 2021, url, p.26
666 Rawabet Center for Research and Strategic Studies, Economy of the largest cities of Iraq “Baghdad”, 4 October
2018, url
667 World Bank, Iraq Economic Monitor, Spring/Summer 2023, 31 July 2023, url, pp. ix-x, 1; IMF, Iraq: 2022 Article IV
Consultation-Press Release; and Staff Report, 3 February 2023, url, p. 5
668 Economist, After 20 years of trauma, Iraq is struggling to recover, 23 March 2023, url; Al Monitor, 'Fertile
ground': Baghdad sees timid revival with investment drive, 26 September 2023, url
669 Asharq Al-Awsat, ‘Fertile Ground’: Baghdad Sees Timid Revival with Investment Drive, 27 September 2023, url;
Reuters, Baghdad gets make-over as repairs kindle guarded optimism, 16 May 2023, url
670 Reuters, Baghdad's historic homes crumble as real estate booms, 7 October 2022, url
671 Washington Post, A building boom fueled by corruption is changing the face of Baghdad, 29 June 2023, url
672 ILO/CSO/KRSO, Iraqi Labour Force Survey 2021, 5 July 2022, url, pp. 6, 15
673 Iraq, MoP, The Second National Voluntary Review Report on the Achievement of the Sustainable Development
Goals, July 2021, url, p. 96
674 ILO/CSO/KRSO, Iraqi Labour Force Survey 2021, 5 July 2022, url, p. 55

66 

IRAQ – COUNTRY FOCUS 

The public sector remains the dominant employer across the country.675 Efforts have recently 
been made by the Iraqi government to reform the private sector,676 which still remains 
underdeveloped,677 lacking social protection678 and largely informal.679 Nepotism680 and 
favouritism along family, tribal and political lines dominates recruitment in both the public and 
the private sector.681 Employment opportunities for young people are limited,682 including for 
university graduates in Baghdad who struggle to find jobs.683 Unemployment and delay in 
payment of public sector salaries were among the main reasons for a series of protests that 
erupted in various cities, including in Baghdad, between 2019 and 2021.684  

2.2.4.  Poverty 

Data on poverty indicators in Iraq are largely outdated.685 The latest survey data publicly 
available for Iraq’s Multidimensional Poverty Index (MPI) refer to 2018. Based on these 
estimates, 8.6 % of the population in Iraq is described as multidimensionally poor while an 
additional 5.2 % is classified as vulnerable to multidimensional poverty. The intensity of 
deprivations in Iraq, which is the average deprivation score among people living in 
multidimensional poverty, is 37.9 %.686 According to poverty rates estimates conducted by the 
Central Statistics Organisation (CSO) and cited by the UN, in 2021, 29.6 % of the Iraqi 
population was under the poverty line, with rates higher in the southern governorates.687 
Based on data by the Ministry of Planning and cited by media outlets, poverty headcounts 
rates in 2021 varied significantly among governorates, with Baghdad and Kurdistan region 
ranging between 12.5 % and 13 %, while some southern governorates reaching 50 %.688  

Baghdad is the governorate where the highest number of slums and informal settlements are 
concentrated.689 Sadr City, a suburb of Baghdad, has been the city's poorest neighbourhood 

675 UN Iraq, Iraq Common Country Analysis 2023, January 2024, p. 54, cited in UNHCR, International Protection 
Considerations with Regards to People Fleeing Iraq, 30 January 2024, url, p. 70, footnote 497; World Bank, Iraq 
Economic Monitor, Spring/Summer 2023, 31 July 2023, url, p. x 
676 ILO, Iraq Invests in Building a Social Security System that Protects Workers, 17 May 2023, url; Equal Times, A 
new era of opportunity is opening up in Iraq with the development of the private sector and the creation of start-
ups, 15 October 2023, url; Amwaj.media, Despite Criticism, Iraq’s PM Pursues Expansion of Public Sector, 17 
January 2023, url; World Bank, Iraq Economic Monitor, Fall 2022, 17 November 2022, url, p. 14 
677 Prospect, Iraq: The Fallout, 1 March 2023, url; AP, Corruption, Deep Disparity Mark Iraq’s Oil Legacy post-2003, 
24 March 2023, url  
678 World Bank, Iraq Country Climate and Development Report, 9 November 2022, url, p. 45 
679 World Bank, Iraq Economic Monitor, Spring/Summer 2023, 31 July 2023, url, pp. x, 3. 
680 UNPD, Community-Based Reconciliation & Reintegration in Iraq, 28 June 2022, url, pp. 31-32; AP, Corruption, 
Deep Disparity Mark Iraq’s Oil Legacy post-2003, 24 March 2023, url; Prospect, Iraq: The Fallout, 1 March 2023, url 
681 RFI/AFP, Iraq's Young Covet Govt Jobs in Headache for Economy, 2 October 2022, url 
682 Musings on Iraq, Iraq’s Youth Hit Hardest by Unemployment and Poverty, 22 January 2024, url; ILO, Cost of 
Inaction: Education Deprivation in Iraq and the Potential of Social Protection to Reverse it, 7 March 2023, url p. 7; 
World Bank, Iraq Economic Monitor, Fall 2022, 17 November 2022, url, pp. 3, 14 
683 Xinhua, Feature: Young Iraqis struggle to find jobs amid continued chaos, conflicts, 29 June 2023, url  
684 AI, Report 2020/21: The State of the World’s Human Rights, 7 April 2021, url, p. 196; Chatham House, Networks 
of power: The Popular Mobilization Forces and the State in Iraq, February 2021, url, p.14; MEMO, Thousands of 
Iraqis protest government employment policy, 1 February 2021, url; Jiyad, S. et al., Economic Drivers of Youth 
Political Discontent in Iraq: The Voice of Young People in Kurdistan, Baghdad, Basra and Thi-Qar, February 2021, 
url, p. 56; AP, Bloated public salaries at heart of Iraq’s economic woes, 23 October 2020, url 
685 SIDA, Multidimensional Poverty Analysis Iraq 2022, April 2022, url, p. 3 
686 UNPD, Multidimensional Poverty Index 2023 Iraq, url, p. 2 
687 UN, Iraq Common Country Analysis, 2022, 27 July 2022, url, pp. 28-29 
688 Shafaq, Abject poverty inflicts less than 2% of the total poverty headcounts, official says, 27 April 2021, url  
689 INA, MOP: Baghdad as the first place in slums, 22 December 2021, url  

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EUROPEAN UNION AGENCY FOR ASYLUM 

for decades.690 Since the US-led 2003 invasion, its population is reported to have tripled, with 
the arrival of displaced people from other governorates.691 Economic opportunities in this 
neighbourhood are reported as non-existent, with unemployment and poverty rampant 
throughout the area.692 

Along with Sadr City, other districts described as ‘poorer’ as well as a ‘concentration of 
economically disadvantaged Shia population in eastern and southern Baghdad’ are Al-Shu‘ala, 
Al-Hurriya and Al-Za‘faraniya.693 

Since PMF members often act as middlemen with government or private entities, particularly 
people in poorer areas in eastern and southern Baghdad and the youth resort to relying on or 
joining PMF groups – the dominant factions there being the Peace Brigades and the Asaib Ahl 
Al-Haq (AAH). Poverty and structural inequality create dependence of Baghdad’s poorer 
neighbourhoods’ residents upon Peace Brigaded and AAH for access to public and/or private 
services, jobs, bureaucratic approval,694 as well as aid support.695 See 1.4.4 Child exploitation 
and child marriage. 

2.2.5.  Food security 

As of 1 August 2023, Baghdad was characterised as 4th top governorate with the highest 
prevalence of insufficient food consumption, affecting a total of 326 000 people.696 Based on 
latest available public data, the price of the food basket697 in Baghdad increased by 36 % in 
late December 2020.698 It was also Baghdad where the highest variation in price was 
observed between January and April 2021.699 Increase in prices across the whole country had 
an impact in the food security at household level,700 leading to increased food insecurity.701 
Rise in food prices was among the main reasons for a wave of protests in cities across Iraq in 
2022, including in Baghdad.702  

690 Vice, The Iraqi war is 20 years old. So are these young Iraqis, 20 March 2023, url  
691 Guardian, Guns, cash, and frozen chicken: the militia boss doling out aid in Baghdad, 20 March 2023, url  
692 Washington Institute, Addressing Iraq's Environmental Challenges: Population Growth, 17 October 2023, url  
693 Skelton, M. and Saleem, Z. A., Living Among the Hashd: Relations Between Citizens and Security Actors in Five 
Iraqi Provinces, IRIS, July 2021, url, pp. 11, 14 
694 Skelton, M. and Saleem, Z. A., Living Among the Hashd: Relations Between Citizens and Security Actors in Five 
Iraqi Provinces, IRIS, July 2021, url, pp. 5, 8, 11, 32-33; Chatham House, Networks of power – The Popular 
Mobilization Forces and the state in Iraq, February 2021, url, p. 15 
695 Guardian, Guns, cash, and frozen chicken: the militia boss doling out aid in Baghdad, 20 March 2023, url 
696 WFP, Hunger Map Live: Iraq insight and key trends, 1 August 2023, url, p. 3 
697 For more information on the composition of the Food Basket see WFP, Iraqi Dinar Devaluation and the Price of 
the Food Basket, 3 March 2021, url, p. 3 
698 FAO et al., Iraq Covid-19 Food Security Monitor - Bi-weekly Update, Issue 25, 5 January 2021, url, p. 2 
699 FAO et al., Food Security in Iraq: Impact of COVID-19, with a Special Section on Water Shortages and 
Adaptation, 3 October 2021, url, p. 28 
700 UN Iraq, Iraq Common Country Analysis 2023, January 2024, p. 23, cited in UNHCR, International Protection 
Considerations with Regards to People Fleeing Iraq, 30 January 2024, url, p. 75, footnote 535 
701 WFP, Iraq Annual Country Report 2022, 11 April 2023, url, pp. 3, 7; World Bank, Iraq Economic Monitor, Fall 2022, 
17 November 2022, url, pp. 9, 13; IOM, Migration, Environment, and Climate Change in Iraq, 11 August 2022, url, p. 
10 
702 Amwaj.media,Tension simmers on Iraqi street as food prices rise, 3 June 2022, url  

68 

IRAQ – COUNTRY FOCUS 

2.2.6.  Healthcare 

As of 2021, Baghdad has the highest concentration of hospitals and secondary care centres of 
the country.703  Data by the Health Ministry in 2020 showed that Baghdad disposed of the 
nationwide highest bed availability in public hospitals (1.6 beds per 1 000 people) with a total 
number of 13 628 beds, of which 10 729 were general hospital beds and the remainder being 
labelled as ‘emergency beds’. Baghdad’s private hospitals offered an additional 2 342 general 
hospital beds.704 In 2023, the government announced to have accelerated the construction 
plans of additional three hospitals in the capital Baghdad, in particular in the densely 
populated districts of Al-Fadhiliya, Al-Hurriya, and Al-Shaab.705 The construction works were 
not completed at the time of drafting.706   (For information on the situation of healthcare at 
national level see  Socio-economic situation  

2.2.7.  Education 

Six years of schooling between ages six and twelve are compulsory for children in Baghdad, 
as in the rest of Federal Iraq.707 School completion rates in Baghdad governorate were 73 % 
for primary school, 44 % for lower secondary school and 32 % for upper secondary school. Out 
of school rates stood at 8 % for primary education level, 20 % for lower secondary and 46 % 
for upper secondary level.708 With 48 % of the country’s universities or colleges and 53 % of 
scientific departments, Baghdad hosts the highest share of tertiary educational institutions 
among all governorates.709 During April 2020, 64 % of children aged 5-17 in four IDP camps in 
Baghdad governorate surveyed by Mercy Hands for Humanitarian Aid reportedly did not 
receive any kind of schooling. Their illiteracy rate was reported as 12 %.710 For more 
information on access to education for children at country level see 1.4 Children. 

2.2.8.  Housing and living conditions 

The housing shortage in the country711 disproportionally affects middle and low-income 
Iraqis.712 The high demand is also pushing the prices up making rents and real estate prices 

703 Istepanian, R. S. H., Mapping Iraq's Post-2003 Health Crisis: Two Decades of Retrogression and Kleptocracy, 
Centre Français de recherche sur l'Irak (CFRI), 31 January 2024, url  
704 Iraq, Ministry of Health and Environment, Annual Statistical Report 2020, 2021, url, pp. 141, 143 
705 BNN, Accelerating Hospital Construction in Baghdad: A Step Towards Enhanced Healthcare Infrastructure, 25 
September 2023, url 
706 Iraq, Ministry of Planning, The Ministry of Planning announced the progress of the completion stages of Al-
Hurriya Hospital in Baghdad, at a rate of 54%, and its opening at the end of next year, 22 March 2023, url 
707 IRFAD, Iraq Education, n.d., accessed 14 March 2024, url 
708 UNICEF, Iraq Education Fact Sheet 2020 – Analyses for learning and equity using MICS data, 2020, url, pp. 9, 
15; UNICEF, How to improve financing of the education sector in Iraq, 30 January 2024, url p. 1 
709 Iraq, MoP, National Development Plan 2018-2022, June 2018, url, p. 197 
710 Mercy Hands for Humanitarian Aid, Health and Educational Status of Iraqi Children in IDP Camps During COVID-
19: An Assessment of Children in IDP Camps in Salah Al Din, Anbar, Ninewa, and Baghdad Governorates of Iraq, 
May 2020, url, pp. 3-4, 9 
711 Zawya, Iraq Has 3 Million House Supply Shortage, 20 September 2023, url; Institute of Regional and International 
Studies (IRIS), Iraq, Economic Review, Vol. 2 (3), October 2022, url, pp. 10-12 
712 UN Iraq, Iraq Common Country Analysis 2021, 26 April 2022, url, p. 46; Institute of Regional and International 
Studies (IRIS), Iraq, Economic Review, Vol. 2 (3), October 2022, url, p. 10 

69 

EUROPEAN UNION AGENCY FOR ASYLUM 

unaffordable for most Iraqis across the country, including in the capital Baghdad.713 For 
instance, the price of a square meter in commercial centres in Baghdad is reported to be up to 
20 000 USD versus 600 USD in the outskirts of the city.714 Baghdad city is witnessing a boom 
in real estate,715 which is reported to be fuelled by corruption and money laundering.716 Many 
of the new estate developments are, however, economically inaccessible to ordinary Iraqis.717 
To address the housing crisis, the Iraqi government has initiated plans for new low-cost and 
high-end housing projects across the country,718 including in the capital Baghdad where it is 
planning to build 70 000 units in Sadr City and 100 000 units in Bismaya City.719 

In 2020, UN Habitat estimated that 12.9 % of the Iraqi population (over 3 million people) lived 
in informal settlements.720 Baghdad has the highest concentration of slums, with over 1 000 
informal settlements,721 which represents around 26 % of the total housing.722 The most 
densely populated neighbourhood of Baghdad is Sadr City, with almost 3 million people living 
in an area of less than 30 km2. Often, multiple families are forced to share one house, in 
conditions of chronic water scarcity and deteriorating sanitation networks.723 Slums are 
present across all 16 municipalities of Baghdad. Many poor, even middle-class families are 
reported to resort to living in informal settlements rather than renting apartments.724 Informal 
settlements are mostly substandard makeshift structures,725 overcrowded and mostly lacking 
services and infrastructure. Children living in these areas are either out of school or have to 
walk long distances to reach schools in the neighbouring residential areas.726 In Baghdad, 
where most job opportunities are concentrated in the city centre, residents of informal 
settlements have limited access to employment, due to a lack of public transportation, high 
transportation costs and checkpoints at the city entrances. As a result, most people residing in 
slums in Baghdad resort to non-fixed income from working in construction and porterage, 
concrete block and brick factories. Most homes in these settlements in Baghdad were built 
illegally,727 putting residents at risk of eviction.728 Law enforcement and justice for residents in 
the slums are provided by tribes, rather than formal law enforcement.729  

713 France 24/AFP, In Iraq, Graft Helps Push Property Prices Out of Reach, 4 January 2023, url; Shafaq, 'Drastic rise' 
in Baghdad's real estate prices, 20 October 2022, url  
714 Al-Monitor, How Can Iraq Help 3.5 Million Citizens Living in Urban Slums?, 21 October 2022, url  
715 Reuters, Baghdad's historic homes crumble as real estate booms, 7 October 2022, url  
716 Washington Post, A building boom fueled by corruption is changing the face of Baghdad, 29 June 2023, url  
717 Al-Shakeri H., The Underbelly Of Iraq’s ‘Economic Boom’, IRIS, 7 October 2023, url  
718 Iraqi News, The Prime Minister Announces the Establishment of a New Residential City in Dhi Qar, 5 January 
2024, url; Zawya, Iraq to Invite Developers to 5 New City Projects, 2 January 2024, url 
719 Zawya, Iraq’s 2nd Largest Housing Project to Be Finished in 3 Years, 15 January 2024, url 
720 UN Habitat, Informal Settlements in the Arab Region, February 2020, url, p. 36 
721 Assafir Al-Arabi, Informal Settlements in Iraq: The Forgotten Cities of the Forgotten, 4 June 2022, url; UN Habitat, 
Informal Settlements in the Arab Region, February 2020, url, pp. 34-36 
722 UN Habitat, Informal Settlements in the Arab Region, February 2020, url, p. 26 
723 Washington Institute, Addressing Iraq's Environmental Challenges: Population Growth, 17 October 2023, url  
724 Assafir Al-Arabi, Informal Settlements in Baghdad, 6 June 2022, url  
725 UN Habitat, Informal Settlements in the Arab Region, February 2020, url, p. 20 
726 Al-Monitor, How Can Iraq Help 3.5 Million Citizens Living in Urban Slums?, 21 October 2022, url; Assafir Al-Arabi, 
Informal Settlements in Baghdad, 6 June 2022, url 
727 Assafir Al-Arabi, Informal Settlements in Baghdad, 6 June 2022, url 
728 IOM, DTM Emergency Tracking: Eviction from Informal Settlements (1-14 November 2023), 6 December 2023, 
url; USDOS, 2022 Country Report on Human Rights Practices: Iraq, 20 March 2023, url, p. 
729 Assafir Al-Arabi, Informal Settlements in Iraq: The Forgotten Cities of the Forgotten, 4 June 2022, url 

70 

IRAQ – COUNTRY FOCUS 

IOM reported that 26 634 IDPs were living in Baghdad as of August 2023, 8 562 of whom 
lived in severe living conditions. From January to April 2023, reduction in the electricity supply 
and job opportunities in Tarmia district and Abu Ghraib district of Baghdad City led to an 
increase in the number of IDPs living in severe conditions.730  

In July 2021, the Federal Government launched an initiative granting land bonds to specific 
groups of persons such as government employees and widows. Such initiative has however 
been criticised for not being properly implemented.731 

Iraq’s electricity system is still degraded732 and power outages across the country occur 
frequently.733 Privately-owned generators that provide electricity across the country are used 
by powerful actors as a source of income.734 Infrastructure works are currently undergoing in 
Baghdad city, and electricity supply is reported to have improved.735 People living in makeshift 
shelters in IDP camps and in informal settlements are particularly impacted by the recurrent 
power cuts.736 Throughout 2022, long queues at petrol stations were reported, as well as the 
closure of numerous others due to a lack of fuel in several cities, including Baghdad.737  

2.2.9.  Water and sanitation 

Dirty and unsafe water is a major health threat at country level.738 Accessing clean drinking 
water is one of the most pressing challenges in Iraq,739 including in Baghdad.740  Water quality 
is reported as extremely low as a result of pollution and untreated waste discharge, especially 
from informal settlements, industrial activities and agriculture. In Baghdad, salinity levels of 
rivers exceed the threshold for drinking water quality, compromising water supply security for 
domestic and agricultural uses.741 For instance, the Municipality of Baghdad treats only 53 % of 
the approximately 1.4 million cubic meters of household wastewater which is disposed of daily. 
Due to a lack of sufficient wastewater disposal systems in slums, treatment rates are even 
lower, and residents are forced to improvise their own sewage systems that usually end up in 
canals and rivers.742 Water contamination is the cause of an increase in disease cases, 
including in Baghdad.743 

730 IOM, Iraq Displacement Index - Findings Round Seven (May- August 2023), October 2023, url, p. 3 
731 Al-Monitor, Mega Projects Do Little to Calm Iraq's Housing Crisis, 19 July 2022, url  
732 UN Iraq, Iraq Common Country Analysis 2021, 26 April 2022, url, p. 50 
733 AGSIW, Urgent Reforms Needed to Unlock Iraq’s Green Potential, 14 November 2023, url 
734 Near East Policy Forum, Solar Solutions to Power Outages in Energy-Rich Iraq, 2 March 2023, url  
735 Reuters, Baghdad gets make-over as repairs kindle guarded optimism, 16 May 2023, url 
736 Euro-Med Human Rights Monitor, Iraq: IDPs in Camps Face Dire Conditions as Temperature Rises, 21 July 2022, 
url; USAID, Iraq: Complex Emergency, 30 September 2022, url, p. 3 
737 New Arab, Iraqis fear fuel crisis as shortages hit Baghdad, Mosul, 16 March 2022, url  
738 France24/AFP, Rampant water pollution threatens Iraq's shrinking rivers, 21 February 2024, url  
739 UN Iraq, Iraq Common Country Analysis 2023, January 2024, p. 17, cited in UNHCR, International Protection 
Considerations with Regards to People Fleeing Iraq, 30 January 2024, url p. 87, footnote 639; REACH, Key Multi-
Sectoral Findings, 14 December 2023, url, pp. 13, 41-42, 52 
740 Kurdistan 24, Baghdad Subdistrict Has Lacked Water for more than 15 Years, 29 October 2023, url; 
France24/AFP, Rampant water pollution threatens Iraq's shrinking rivers, 21 February 2024, url  
741 UN Iraq, Iraq Common Country Analysis 2023, January 2024, p. 58, cited in UNHCR, International Protection 
Considerations with Regards to People Fleeing Iraq, 30 January 2024, url p. 87, footnote 640; Shafaq, ‘State 
Toxins’ Infiltrate Iraqi Homes: Drought, Pollution, and Government Initiatives, 1 October 2023, url  
742 Water, Peace and Security, Action Needed: Three Priorities for Iraq’s Water Sector, June 2022, url, p. 7  
743 Shafaq, ‘State Toxins’ Infiltrate Iraqi Homes: Drought, Pollution, and Government Initiatives, 1 October 2023, url 

71 

EUROPEAN UNION AGENCY FOR ASYLUM 

2.3.  Sulaymaniyah 

 Entry, residency requirements and access to civil 

2.3.1. 
documentation and services 

According to UNHCR, for Iraqis who originate from any other KRI governorates and for Iraqi 
Kurds from outside the KRI, there is generally no entry requirements or restrictions to enter 
Sulaymaniyah governorate, other than presenting their Civil Status ID Card/Unified ID Card. 
Yazidis from outside the KRI are in practice treated similarly to Kurds and can enter 
Sulaymaniyah governorate by presenting their Civil Status ID Card/Unified ID Card.744 

UNHCR information indicates that Iraqi Arabs and Turkmen who originate from outside the KRI 
go through security screening at the internal border (not the airport), following which, they are 
granted by the Asayish a temporary entry permit (Tourist Visitor Card) valid for 30 days. Such 
short-term entry permit allows individuals to stay in Sulaymaniyah governorate for the validity 
period and is granted for purposes such as medical care, business, shopping, or other 
reasons. Individuals who hold the Tourist Visitor Card cannot access employment or rent an 
apartment, other than a hotel room. Individuals who hold a Tourist Visitor Card and intend to 
stay beyond the 30 day-period must regularise their stay with the Asayish and the mukhtar in 
the neighbourhood where they seek to reside. Individuals who arrive in the governorate via 
Sulaymaniyah airport are not granted a Tourist Visitor Card and if they intend to stay in the 
governorate, they must approach the Asayish and the mukhtar in the neighbourhood where 
they seek to reside.745 

Regardless of their place of origin and ethno-religious profile, all Iraqis have access to public 
education and health services in Sulaymaniyah. For people to access other rights and basic 
services, including employment and housing, they must regularise their stay with the Asayish 
and transfer their Housing Card.746   

UNHCR notes that residency requirements vary depending on the place of origin, ethno-
religious profile and family status of the individual.747 In fact, in the KRI, individuals with certain 
profiles or originating from certain areas are not allowed to transfer their Housing Card or 
obtain a new Housing Card. This is also the case for Sulaymaniyah governorate, where single 
Arab and Turkmen men and women, as well as Kurds and Yazidis originating from the 
disputed territories748 cannot request the transfer of their Public Distribution System (PDS) 
card, but they must instead return to the place of origin to obtain the monthly food rations. 

744 UNHCR, Ability of Iraqis to Legally Access and Settle Durably in Proposed Areas of Internal Relocation, 
November 2022, url, pp. 5-6; UNHCR, email communication with EUAA, 8 May 2024 
745 UNHCR, Ability of Iraqis to Legally Access and Settle Durably in Proposed Areas of Internal Relocation, 
November 2022, url, pp. 5-6; UNHCR, email communication with EUAA, 8 May 2024 
746 UNHCR, Ability of Iraqis to Legally Access and Settle Durably in Proposed Areas of Internal Relocation, 
November 2022, url, p. 15; UNHCR, email communication with EUAA, 8 May 2024 
747 UNHCR, Ability of Iraqis to Legally Access and Settle Durably in Proposed Areas of Internal Relocation, 
November 2022, url, p. 15; UNHCR, email communication with EUAA, 8 May 2024 
748 UNHCR, Ability of Iraqis to Legally Access and Settle Durably in Proposed Areas of Internal Relocation, 
November 2022, url, pp. 8-9, 13; UNHCR, email communication with EUAA, 8 May 2024 

72 

IRAQ – COUNTRY FOCUS 

Newborns can be added to the PDS cards only by returning to the place of origin. The renewal 
of the PDS card can be done in Sulaymaniyah.749 

Transfer or Issuance of the Housing Card for Iraqis from another KRI governorate 

Irrespective of their ethnic/religious background, Iraqis originating from another governorate 
in the KRI, need to request a new Asayish code750 and either transfer their Housing Card from 
the governorate of origin to Sulaymaniyah Governorate, or obtain a new Housing Card in 
Sulaymaniyah Governorate. These procedures involve various steps, including an interview by 
the General Asayish Directorate of Sulaymaniyah. Once the individuals have obtained a new 
Asayish code, they can start the process of renting a house. However, only once they have 
transferred the Housing Card in Sulaymaniyah Governorate, they can sign a rental agreement, 
access employment and also transfer their PDS card. To obtain or renew their CSID/UNID in 
Sulaymaniyah, individuals need to return to their place of origin. Single men and women are 
reported to face restrictions on areas and types of rental accommodation.751   

Transfer or Issuance of the Housing Card for Kurds and Yazidis from outside the KRI 

For Iraqis with Kurdish or Yazidi background who originate from a governorate outside the 
KRI, the same process as for Iraqis from another KRI governorate, as described above, applies. 
Once their Housing Card has been transferred to or issued in Sulaymaniyah, they have access 
to regular employment and can request the transfer of the PDS card to Sulaymaniyah (unless 
they originate from the disputed areas). To obtain or renew their CSID/UNID in Sulaymaniyah, 
individuals need to return to their place of origin. Single men and women are reported to face 
restrictions on types and location of rental accommodation.752  

Issuance of residency permit for Arab and Turkmen families from outside the KRI 

To obtain a residency card, Arab and Turkmen families originating from outside the KRI do not 
require a sponsor, however they must contact the local Asayish in the neighbourhood in 
which they seek to reside. The residency card is valid for one year and can be renewed. Once 
obtained the one-year residency card, Arab and Turkmen families can rent an apartment and 
access informal employment (usually in the construction and hospitality sectors).753 

749 UNHCR, Ability of Iraqis to Legally Access and Settle Durably in Proposed Areas of Internal Relocation, 
November 2022, url, p. 15 footnote 50; UNHCR, email communication with EUAA, 8 May 2024 
750 UNHCR noted that ‘The Asayish code is provided to every individual above 18 years old. Due to prevailing 
political, security and administrative divisions, the Asayish codes vary in each KR-I governorate. Therefore, 
individuals from Erbil, Dohuk or Halabja seeking to settle in Sulaymaniyah Governorate will require a new Asayish 
code.’ UNHCR, Ability of Iraqis to Legally Access and Settle Durably in Proposed Areas of Internal Relocation, 
November 2022, url, p.15 footnote 49 
751 UNHCR, Ability of Iraqis to Legally Access and Settle Durably in Proposed Areas of Internal Relocation, 

November 2022, url, pp. 15-16; UNHCR, email communication with EUAA, 8 May 2024 

752 UNHCR, Ability of Iraqis to Legally Access and Settle Durably in Proposed Areas of Internal Relocation, 

November 2022, url, pp. 15-16; UNHCR, email communication with EUAA, 8 May 2024 

753 UNHCR, Ability of Iraqis to Legally Access and Settle Durably in Proposed Areas of Internal Relocation, 

November 2022, url, pp. 15-16; UNHCR, email communication with EUAA, 8 May 2024 

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EUROPEAN UNION AGENCY FOR ASYLUM 

Transfer or issuance of the Housing Card for Arab and Turkmen families outside the KRI 

Arab and Turkmen families who hold a one-year residency card can request the transfer of 
their Housing Card to Sulaymaniyah, or obtain a new Housing Card (same process as 
described above for Iraqis from another KRI governorate applies). Once they obtain the 
transfer of their Housing Card, these individuals can access regular employment. They can 
also request the transfer of their PDS card to Sulaymaniyah. To obtain or renew their 
CSID/UNID in Sulaymaniyah, individuals need to return to their place of origin.754 

Issuance of residency permit for Arab and Turkmen single men and women 

Normally, single Arab and Turkmen men and women are reported to be granted only a one-
month renewable residency permit. In exceptional cases, they obtain a one-year, renewable 
residency card from the Asayish, only if they can secure regular employment and submit a 
support letter from their employer. UNHCR stated that, ‘in practice, holders of a one-month 
residency card face difficulties in finding regular employment due to the short duration of their 
permits.’ These individuals also face restrictions regarding the type and the location of rental 
accommodation.755  

2.3.2.  Economy 

The city of Sulaymaniyah has a population of 780 000,756 with a predominantly Sunni Kurdish 
resident population, and smaller numbers of Shia Kurds, Sunni and Shia Arabs, Christians and 
other minorities residing there. Since 2014, the city has hosted primarily Sunni Arab IDPs from 
across conflict-affected governorates.757 The KRG economy relies heavily on oil exports and 
on budget transfers from federal government.758 Disagreements on oil and gas management 
between the KRG and the federal government, as well as between the Patriotic Union of 
Kurdistan (PUK) (which runs Sulaymaniyah Governorate) and the Kurdistan Democratic Party 
(KDP) have had an impact on the economic stability of Sulaymaniyah governorate. Among 
other grievances, the PUK accused the KRG of budget cuts. Insufficient funds have caused a 
wage crisis in Sulaymaniyah, resulting in delays of salary payments.759  

In March 2023, the pipeline that transports oil from the KRI to Türkiye for onward export was 
shut down following an arbitration case760 ruled in favour of Baghdad. The ruling stated that 
Türkiye breached the 1973 pipeline agreement by allowing the KRG to pump and export oil 
without Baghdad's consent.761 By the time of drafting, the KRI oil exports had not resumed 
yet.762 The halting of oil exports through Türkiye since March 2023763 has had serious 

754 UNHCR, Ability of Iraqis to Legally Access and Settle Durably in Proposed Areas of Internal Relocation, 

November 2022, url, pp. 15-16; UNHCR, email communication with EUAA, 8 May 2024 

755 UNHCR, Ability of Iraqis to Legally Access and Settle Durably in Proposed Areas of Internal Relocation, 
November 2022, url, pp. 15-16; UNHCR, email communication with EUAA, 8 May 2024 
756 World Bank, Iraq Economic Monitor, Spring/Summer 2023, 31 July 2023, url, p. 3, footnote c 
757 IOM, Cities as Home: Location Factsheets and Case Studies of Local Integration, 6 January 2021, url, p. 18 
758 SIPRI, Iraq in 2023: Challenges and prospects for peace and human security, 17 March 2023, url  
759 Washington Institute, PUK and KDP: A New Era of Conflict, 21 December 2022, url 
760 Argus, No imminent Iraqi Kurdistan crude restart: KRG official, 16 February 2024, url  
761 The National, Iraq Export Pipeline Closure Wreaks Havoc on Kurdish Region Economy, 21 September 2023, url 
762 Rudaw, Oil producers ask US to discuss Kurdistan exports with PM Sudani, 16 February 2024, url  
763 World Bank, Iraq Economic Monitor, Spring/Summer 2023, 31 July 2023, url, p. 5 

74 

IRAQ – COUNTRY FOCUS 

economic consequences in the region, due to loss in revenues and increasing fiscal pressure 
on the KRG. Oil production companies have been forced to cut salaries and lay off employees, 
while the regional government has been unable to pay public salaries and provide some 
services.764 Public sector workers held a series of protests in Sulaymaniyah city, as well as in 
other cities of the KRI, over unpaid salaries.765 A court decision issued on 21 February 2024 by 
the Federal Supreme Court of Iraq ordered the KRG to hand over all oil and non-oil revenues 
to Baghdad, de facto giving full control to the federal government on the KRG’s finances. The 
same ruling also ordered the payment of public sector salaries in the KRI to be disbursed 
directly by the federal government rather than through the current system of monthly loans to 
the KRG.766  

2.3.3.  Employment 

According to latest available data from 2021, the unemployment rate in Sulaymaniyah 
governorate was at 11.9 %.767 The public sector, which is marred by corruption and inefficiency, 
remains the largest employer in the KRI.768 In the past decade, the KRG has struggled to pay 
its civil servants on time,769 triggering protests770 and strikes.771 Recruitment in both the public 
and the private sector is dominated by nepotism and cronyism along family, tribal, ethno-
sectarian, and political lines.772 The lack of employment opportunities in the KRI, especially 
among young people,773 has been a recurrent trigger for social unrest774 and migration (both 
rural-urban migration and emigration).775  

764 Washington Institute, Renewing the KRG’s Opposition Parties for 2024 Parliamentary Elections, 8 January 2024, 
url; The National, Iraq Export Pipeline Closure Wreaks Havoc on Kurdish Region Economy, 21 September 2023, url 
765 AP, Public sector workers in Iraq's Sulaymaniyah protest over unpaid salaries, 14 January 2024, via YouTube AP 
channel, url; Rudaw, Striking teachers plan protest despite government promises, 7 January 2024, url; France 
24/AFP, Iraqi Kurds protest unpaid salaries from Baghdad, 5 September 2023, url; Shafaq News, Employees in Al-
Sulaymaniyah and Halabja Strike amid Salary Delays, 10 September 2023, url  
766 Epic, ISHM: February 15 – 22 2024, 22 February 2024, url; S&P Global, Iraqi federal court ruling deals another 
blow to Kurdistan regional government's oil autonomy, 22 February 2024, url 
767 ILO/CSO/KRSO, Iraqi Labour Force Survey 2021, 5 July 2022, url, p. 13 
768 Wahab B., The Rise and Fall of Kurdish Power in Iraq, in: Middle East Report (306 Spring 2023), April 2023, url  
769 CFRI, The Root Causes of Kurdish Iraqi Migration: Early Warnings of an Impending Youth Quake in the KRI, 13 
July 2022, url 
770 EPC, Sulaymaniyah-Erbil Disagreement: Scenarios of Division in Iraqi Kurdistan, 21 March 2021, url; MRG, 
Minority and Indigenous Trends 2021 – Focus on Covid-19, 30 June 2021, url, p. 154; AI, Report 2020/21: The State 
of the World’s Human Rights, 7 April 2021, url, p. 197 
771 New Arab, Iraqi Kurdistan Doctors, Teachers, and Garbage Collectors Go on Strike over Unpaid Salaries, 7 March 
2022, url 
772 Arab Reform Initiative, Understanding the Roots of the Younger Generations’ Despair in the Kurdistan Region of 
Iraq, 4 April 2023, url; AP, Corruption, Deep Disparity Mark Iraq’s Oil Legacy post-2003, 24 March 2023, url  
773 CFRI, The Root Causes of Kurdish Iraqi Migration: Early Warnings of an Impending Youth Quake in the KRI, 13 
July 2022, url 
774 ILO, Cost of Inaction: Education Deprivation in Iraq and the Potential of Social Protection to Reverse it, 7 March 
2023, url, p. 7; France24/AFP, Iraq's Young Covet Govt Jobs in Headache for Economy, 2 October 2022, url; UNDP, 
Reimagining the Social Contract in Iraq, 1 June 2022, url, pp. 17, 19 
775 Rudaw, Kurdistan Region’s Youth Blame Lack of Opportunities for Desire to Migrate, 6 September 2023, url; 
CFRI, The Root Causes of Kurdish Iraqi Migration: Early Warnings of an Impending Youth Quake in the KRI, 13 July 
2022, url; Rudaw, Youth from Sulaimani’s Raparin migrate en masse due to lack of services, 4 September 2023, url  

75 

EUROPEAN UNION AGENCY FOR ASYLUM 

2.3.4.  Poverty 

Based on data by the Iraqi Ministry of Planning and cited by media outlets, poverty 
headcounts rates in 2021 stood between 12.5 % and 13 %, in the KRI.776 Particularly critical is 
poverty among IDPs and returnees in some governorates, including in Sulaymaniyah.777 As of 
December 2023, 8 % of the country’s IDP population was situated in Sulaymaniyah 
governorate.778 As noted by UNHCR, many IDPs and returnees in Iraq, in both urban and rural 
areas, often face challenges in accessing basic services and employment, are more likely to 
be poor, food insecure, dependent on humanitarian aid and more exposed to violence, abuse, 
and exploitation.779 

2.3.5.  Food security 

According to data by FAO and cited by the UN, 41 % of households in Iraq face moderate to 
severe food insecurity, with Anbar, Dohuk, Erbil, and Sulaymaniyah most affected.780 As of 1 
August 2023, Sulaymaniyah was characterised as the 11th among the governorates with the 
highest prevalence of crisis or above crisis level food-based coping strategies, affecting a total 
of 84 800 people.781 Media sources reported that meat prices have seen an unprecedented 
increase in Iraq, and especially in the KRI, at the point where ‘meat has begun to disappear 
from the tables of poor and low-income families.’782 This is also the case in Sulaymaniyah, 
where citizens raised concerns about increase in prices, especially of meats but also other 
basic food materials.783  

2.3.6.  Healthcare 

The quality and availability of healthcare in the KRI is described as slightly better than in the 
rest of Iraq,784 however much of the capacity is concentrated in urban areas.785 As of 2020, 
there were 1.6 hospital beds per 1 000 population in the KRI, the highest number being in 
Sulaymaniyah (1.8).786 Based on 2020 data by the Ministry of Health and environment, 
Sulaymaniyah had 63 hospitals, of which 38 were public (including 1 offering tertiary 

776 Shafaq, Abject poverty inflicts less than 2% of the total poverty headcounts, official says, 27 April 2021, url  
777 UNOCHA, Humanitarian Needs Overview 2022: Iraq, 27 March 2022, url, p. 81 
778 UNCHR/DTM, Iraq - Population Profile - Breakdown Overview - IDPs and Returnees, 29 January 2024, url  
779 UNHCR, International Protection Considerations with Regards to People Fleeing Iraq, 30 January 2024, url, p. 
197 
780 UN Iraq, Iraq Common Country Analysis 2023, January 2024, pp. 22-23, cited in UNHCR, International 
Protection Considerations with Regards to People Fleeing Iraq, 30 January 2024, url, p. 75, footnote 536 
781 WFP, Hunger Map Live: Iraq insight and key trends, 1 August 2023, url, p. 2 
782 Shafaq, Iraqi Trade Minister addresses concerns over food reserve and meat prices , 22 February 2024, url  
783 New Arab, As Ramadan approaches in Iraq, Food prices increase amid complaints of government inaction, 26 
February 2024, url  
784 Australia, DFAT, Country Information Report Iraq, 16 January 2023, url, p. 8; Sulaiman H. M., et al.., Health 
System Performance, Mitigation, and Imperative Reform Approaches in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq: A Qualitative 
SWOT Analysis from the Stakeholders’ Point of View, in: Duhok Medical Journal, Vol. 17(1), 2023, url, pp. 91-93 
785 Sulaiman H. M., et al.., Health System Performance, Mitigation, and Imperative Reform Approaches in the 
Kurdistan Region of Iraq: A Qualitative SWOT Analysis from the Stakeholders’ Point of View, in Duhok Medical 
Journal, Vol. 17(1), 2023, url, pp. 90-93; Al Dabbagh S. A., et al.., Workload Assessment of Medical Doctors at 
Primary Health Care Centers in the Duhok Governorate, in Human Resources for Health, Vol. 19, January 2022, url 
786 Sulaiman H. M., et al.., Health System Performance, Mitigation, and Imperative Reform Approaches in the 
Kurdistan Region of Iraq, Vol. 17 Issue 1, 2023, url, pp. 91-93  

76 

IRAQ – COUNTRY FOCUS 

healthcare) and 25 were private.787 Data released by the KRG and reported by local media in 
2023 showed a total of 135 hospitals (52 private and 83 public) and 1 470 health centres in the 
KRI, of which 16 % are located in cities, 32 % in districts, 11 % in sub-districts and 41 % in 
villages.788 On the occasion of the inauguration of a new specialised paediatric Intensive Care 
Unit (ICU) in Sulaymaniyah in 2023, a health authorities representative stated that scarcity of 
intensive care remains a significant problem, forcing citizens to resort to private hospitals, 
where costs range from 500 000 to 3 million Iraqi dinars per night.789 In April 2022, several 
public hospitals in Sulaymaniyah had to temporarily suspend their services due to shortages 
of medical supplies and medication, particularly for chronic diseases.790 Also, due to budget 
deficits, health workers went on strike during 2023, limiting health services beyond 
emergency and critical care.791 

2.3.7.  Education 

School completion rates in Sulaymaniyah governorate were 91 % for primary school, 72 % for 
lower secondary school and 45 % for upper secondary school. Out of school rates were 2 % 
on the primary, 9 % on the lower secondary and 20 % on the upper secondary levels.792 As of 
2021, illiteracy rate in Sulaymaniyah governorate stood at 24 %.793 In Sulaymaniyah, all Iraqis 
have access to education, regardless of their place of origin and ethno-religious profile,794 
provided they hold civil documentation.795 For more information on access to education for 
children at country level see 1.4 Children. In 2023, over 58 000 teachers went on strike in 
Sulaymaniyah governorate over unpaid salaries, due to unresolved oil and financial disputes 
between KRG and Federal government.796 As of January 2024, most schools in Sulaymaniyah 
governorate (as well as in Halabja and the administrations of Garmiyan, Raparin, and Koya) 
had yet to open their doors for the new academic year which began in September 2023,797 as 
teachers were on strike.798 At the end of February 2024, KRG authorities announced teachers 

787 Iraq, Ministry of Health and Environment, Annual Statistical Report 2020, 2021, url, pp. 138,139, 141, 143 
788 Kurdistan 24, KRG Ministry of Health publishes healthcare statistics, 31 July 2023, url  
789 Shafaq News, Al-Sulaymaniyah Inaugurates Iraq's Largest Pediatric ICU, 16 August 2023, url  
790 UN Iraq Resident Coordinator Office (RCO) / UNAMI Development Support Office (DSO), Field Report Issue 22, 
23 July 2022, url, pp. 3-5; Sulaiman H. M., et al.., Health System Performance, Mitigation, and Imperative Reform 
Approaches in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq, Vol. 17 Issue 1, 2023, url, 82; Esta Media Network, Official Says 
Sulaimani Pediatric Hospital ICU Section Suspended Works; Live of many Are at Risk, 13 December 2023, url  
791 Rudaw, Patients, Students, Civil Servants Lose in Erbil, Baghdad Money Row, 17 September 2023, url; Shafaq, 
Employees in Al-Sulaymaniyah and Halabja Strike amid Salary Delays, 10 September 2023, url; AFP, Iraqi Kurds 
Protest Unpaid Salaries from Baghdad, 5 September 2023, url  
792 UNICEF, Iraq Education Fact Sheet 2020 – Analyses for learning and equity using MICS data, 2020, url, pp. 9, 15 
793 Iraq, MoP, The Second National Voluntary Review Report on the Achievement of the Sustainable Development 
Goals, July 2021, url, p. 99 
794 UNHCR, Ability of Iraqis to Legally Access and Settle Durably in Proposed Areas of Internal Relocation, 
November 2022, url, p. 15 
795 DRC, Life in the Margins, September 2022, url; HRW, World Report 2024, Events of 2023, 11 January 2024, url; 
AI, Report 2022/23; The State of the World's Human Rights; Iraq 2022, 27 March 2023, url 
796 Iraq Oil Report, Two-month teachers’ strike underscores severity of Baghdad-Erbil problems, 21 September 
2023, url 
797 Rudaw, Striking teachers plan protest despite government promises, 7 January 2024, url  
798 Kirkuk Now, Sulaymaniyah Teachers under Pressure Arresting Organizers of Demonstrations, Threats of 
Dismissal, 22 January 2024, url  

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EUROPEAN UNION AGENCY FOR ASYLUM 

had returned to classrooms after months of strike.799 Like in the rest of Iraq,800 KRI lacks 
sufficient number of classrooms and qualified teachers to accommodate education for the 
growing number of young students. For instance, in Ranya, in Sulaymaniyah governorate, a 
shift system is in place, which limits students’ class time to just four hours per school daily. 
Most schools are reported to operate on a two-shift system, while some schools are forced to 
use a three-shift system due to the lack of space and large number of students.801  

2.3.8.  Housing and living conditions 

The demand for housing has been growing in Sulaymaniyah, with people moving from the 
villages to the city for employment opportunities.802 Like in Federal Iraq,803 to address the 
housing crisis,804 the KRG authorities are planning the construction of affordable housing units 
in various areas of the KRI, including in Sulaymaniyah.805 The power system in the KRI is more 
reliable, 806 but electricity shortages are still common,807 including in Sulaymaniyah.808 For 
information on civil documentation needed for accessing housing, see      Entry, residency 
requirements and access to civil documentation and services 2.3.1. Entry, residency 
requirements and access to civil documentation and services. 

2.3.9.  Water and sanitation 

The KRI, including Sulaymaniyah,809 is experiencing water shortages and long periods of 
drought,810 which are becoming pressing issue threatening the general well-being of the 
population. The river Tanjaro, located in Sulaymaniyah city, is reported to be polluted with 
untreated waste, oils, and harmful metals from factories, waste sites, and refineries. This water 
flows into the Darbandikhan Dam reservoir, which provides drinking water to hundreds of 
thousands people. The polluted water then continues to flow downstream, eventually into the 
Tigris River and the Gulf, affecting many communities along the way.811 Due to lack of safe 

799 Shafaq, Kurdistan education minister announces Sulaymaniyah teachers’ return, unveils development strategy, 
29 February 2024, url  
800 UN Iraq, Iraq Common Country Analysis 2023, January 2024, p. 45, cited in UNHCR, International Protection 
Considerations with Regards to People Fleeing Iraq, 30 January 2024, url, p. 84, footnote 615 
801 Al-Monitor, In Iraq's Kurdistan Region, Teacher Strikes Highlight Schooling Crisis, 15 January 2024, url  
802 Jamal Ali, B. et al.., Factors Shaping Customer Satisfaction with Residential Flats: Evidence from Sulaymaniyah 
City, 10 May 2021, url, pp. 1-2 
803 Iraqi News, The Prime Minister Announces the Establishment of a New Residential City in Dhi Qar, 5 January 
2024, url; Zawya, Iraq to Invite Developers to 5 New City Projects, 2 January 2024, url 
804 Shafaq, Trumping Kurdistan, Real Estate Prices 'Spark Uproar' in Al-Anbar, 21 August 2022, url  
805 Bas News, KRG to Build Housing Units for Low-income Earners, 16 May 2923, url 
806 Rudaw, Garmiyan Village Residents Leave amid Water Scarcity, 29 October 2023, url; Freedom House, 
Freedom on the Net 2023: Iraq, 4 October 2023, url  
807 Shafaq, Kurdistan Region Ministry of Electricity Releases Statistics on Power Infrastructure and Subscribers, 29 
August 2023, url; Rudaw, Protesters block Sulaimani-Erbil road over electricity shortages, 2 January 2024, url  
808 Draw Media, Slemani Is Going to Run Out of Electricity, 12 January 2023, url  
809 Washington Kurdish Institute, In the Midst of the Riparians: Kurdistan’s position at the center of an impending 
water crisis in the Tigris-Euphrates River Basin, 15 February 2023, url  
810 Raseef22, Thirsty for Solutions: Erbil's Escalating Water Crisis Amidst Rapid Urbanization and Climate Change, 2 
August 2023, url; Rudaw, Several Erbil Neighbourhoods Suffer from Lack of Water, 13 July 2023, url; AFP, Iraq’s 
Mesopotamian Marshlands Are Dying at an Alarming Rate, 13 July 2023, url 
811 Rudaw Research Centre, Navigating Water Scarcity in the Kurdistan Region: Challenges, Causes, and Crucial 
Solutions, 28 August 2023, url 

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water, poor sanitation and hygiene, Iraq saw a cholera outbreak in 2022812 mostly affecting the 
governorates of Sulaymaniyah, Al Muthanna, Baghdad, Kirkuk, Babel, Thi Qar, and Al 
Qadisiyyah.813 Between August814 and September 2023, health authorities confirmed 130 cases 
of cholera in Sulaymaniyah, along with several other cases registered in Erbil.815 

812 IFRC, Iraq: Cholera Epidemic-Emergency Plan of Action (EPoA), DREF n° MDRIQ01, 7 July 2022, url, pp. 1-2, 13 
813 IFRC, Iraq: Cholera Epidemic-Emergency Plan of Action (EPoA), DREF n° MDRIQ015, 1 December 2023, url, pp. 1 
814 Rudaw, 10 confirmed cases of cholera: Sulaimani health, 31 August 2023, url  
815 Rudaw, 130 confirmed cholera cases in Sulaimani, says health minister, 14 September 2023, url  

79 

EUROPEAN UNION AGENCY FOR ASYLUM 

Annex 1: Bibliography 

Oral sources, including anonymous sources 

Sarah Sanbar, email communication with EUAA, 16 March 2024. Sanbar is a researcher at the 
Middle East and North Africa division at Human Rights Watch. She specialised in the 
investigation of human rights abuses in Iraq. 

UNHCR representatives, email communication with EUAA, 8 May 2024 

US-based Iraq analyst, video interview with EUAA 12 December 2023, and email 
communication 4 March 2024. The analyst has extensive expertise on topics such as security 
and political situation in the country. 

Public sources 

AA (Anadolu Agency), Iraq's divorce rate steadily mounting: Judicial source, 31 January 2018, 
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ABC News, Iraq's LGBT Community Could Face Death Penalty under Proposed New Law, 16 
September 2023, https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-09-17/iraq-proposes-death-penalty-for-
lgbt-relationships/102777576, accessed 9 April 2024 

Abdo G., Violence Against Women Permeates All Aspects of Life in Iraq, Wilson Centre, 29 
November 2022, https://www.wilsoncenter.org/blog-post/violence-against-women-permeates-
all-aspects-life-
iraq#:~:text=According%20to%20statistics%20published%20by,physical%20violence%20(3.6%
20percent), accessed 9 April 2024 

Abed A., Violence Against Women in Iraq: Between Practice and Legislation, LSE Blog, 8 July 
2020, https://blogs.lse.ac.uk/mec/2020/07/08/violence-against-women-in-iraq-between-
practice-and-legislation/, accessed 9 April 2024 

ACLED (Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project), The Muqawama and its Enemies, 23 
May 2023, https://acleddata.com/2023/05/23/the-muqawama-and-its-enemies-shifting-
patterns-in-iran-backed-shiite-militia-activity-in-iraq/, accessed 9 April 2024 

Action Against Hunger, Conflict sensitivity assessment in Ninewa, 27 January 2023, 
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Action Against Hunger, Drivers of Conflict and Community Tensions in Post-War Iraq, 5 May 
2023, https://www.actioncontrelafaim.org/en/publication/drivers-of-conflict-and-community-
tensions-in-post-war-iraq/, accessed 9 April 2024 

80 

IRAQ – COUNTRY FOCUS 

Arab News, Iraqi Kurds Protest Unpaid Salaries from Baghdad, 5 September 2023, 
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AGSIW (The Arab Gulf States Institute in Washington), Urgent Reforms Needed to Unlock 
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AI (Amnesty International), Iraq: Action must be taken on gender-based violence after murder 
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based-violence-after-murder-of-tiba-ali-by-her-father/, accessed 9 April 2024 

AI (Amnesty International), Iraq: Authorities must immediately reverse media ban on the terms 
“homosexuality” and “gender”, 9 August 2023, 
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AI (Amnesty International), Iraq: Draft laws threaten rights to freedom of expression and 
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AI (Amnesty International), Iraq: Government must match rhetoric on human rights with 
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2024 

AI (Amnesty International), Iraq: Joint statement: Iraqi authorities must cease chilling 
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AI (Amnesty International), Iraq: Legacy of Terror: The Plight of Yezidi Child Survivors of ISIS, 
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AI (Amnesty International), Iraq: Open Letter to Prime Minister Al-Sudani: End Iraq’s Reign of 
Impunity, 15 March 2023, https://www.amnesty.org/en/documents/mde14/6433/2023/en/  
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AI (Amnesty International), Report 2020/21: The State of the World’s Human Rights, 7 April 
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2024 

AI (Amnesty International), Report 2022/23; The State of the World's Human Rights; Iraq 2022, 
27 March 2023, https://www.amnesty.org/en/location/middle-east-and-north-africa/iraq/report-
iraq/, accessed 9 April 2024 

Al Dabbagh S. A., et al. ., Workload Assessment of Medical Doctors at Primary Health Care 
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accessed 9 April 2024 

81 

EUROPEAN UNION AGENCY FOR ASYLUM 

Al Jazeera, As Iraq backslides on gender equality, where are its women MPs?, 9 September 
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Al Jazeera, Iraq approves record $153bn budget aimed at creating jobs, 12 June 2023, 
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Al Jazeera, The long shadow of Saddam’s dictatorship in Iraq, 16 April 2023,  
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Alkhudary T., Iraqi Women are Engaged in a Struggle for their Rights, LSE’s Middle East Centre 
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Al Kaabi A., Knights M., Iraq's "Resistance" Factions Shift to Major Crackdown on Media 
Spaces, Washington Institute for Near East Policy, 28 February 2024, 
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Al-Mayali I., Iraqi Women Will Not Be Silenced, 9 February 2021, in IWPR, 
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Al Menasa, No Waiver, no Divorce: Half of Iraqi Women Blackmailed into the Worst Deal, when 
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Al Monitor, 'Fertile ground': Baghdad sees timid revival with investment drive, 26 September 
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Al Monitor, 'Iraq is not an Islamic country': Minorities protest Baghdad's alcohol ban as 
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Al-Monitor, In Iraq's Kurdistan Region, Teacher Strikes Highlight Schooling Crisis, 15 January 
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crisis?token=eyJlbWFpbCI6ImdhYnJpZWxhQHdlbmdlcnQuY2giLCJuaWQiOiI2MjAxNyJ9&utm
_medium=email&utm_campaign=Ungrouped%20transactional%20email&utm_content=Ungro
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dd913c65df2f&utm_source=campmgr&utm_term=Access%20Article, accessed 9 April 2024 

82 

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Al-Monitor, Mega Projects Do Little to Calm Iraq's Housing Crisis, 19 July 2022, https://www.al-
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April 2024 

Al-Obaidi, B. S. H., The impact of legislation on empowering women. A comparative study 
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Al-Samaraie, N., Interview with EUAA, 27 October 2022, originally cited in EUAA, COI Report, 
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Al-Shakeri H., The Underbelly Of Iraq’s ‘Economic Boom’, IRIS, 7 October 2023, 
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Alshamary, M., Interview with Al Jazeera, The Stream, Why hasn’t Iraq adopted any laws 
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Amwaj.media, Despite Criticism, Iraq’s PM Pursues Expansion of Public Sector, 17 January 
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Amwaj.media, Tension simmers on Iraqi street as food prices rise, 3 June 2022, 
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AP (Associated Press), Iraq steps up repatriations from Islamic State camp in Syria, hoping to 
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AP (Associated Press), Residents, aid workers surprised by closure of Iraqi camp, 18 April 
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AP (Associated Press),  20 years after U.S. invasion, young Iraqis see signs of hope, 17 March 
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AP (Associated Press), Bloated public salaries at heart of Iraq’s economic woes, 23 October 
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AP (Associated Press), Corruption, Deep Disparity Mark Iraq’s Oil Legacy post-2003, 24 March 
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AP (Associated Press), Fearing ostracism or worse, many nonbelievers hide their views in the 
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AP (Associated Press), Influential Iraqi cleric launches anti-LGBTQ campaign, 2 December 
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85 

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ome-
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Iraq Oil Report, Two-month teachers’ strike underscores severity of Baghdad-Erbil problems, 
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96 

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 بابلا
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2022
2023
ـ

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 يناثلا

 ةعومجملا

 [Statistical 

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Kurdistan 24, Baghdad Subdistrict Has Lacked Water for more than 15 Years, 29 October 
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more-than-15-years, accessed 10 April 2024 

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Kurdistan 24, Iraq records over 6,000 divorce cases in one month, 3 April 2023, 
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Kurdistan 24, Iraq’s President Pledges Reconstruction in Nineveh, 28 December 2022, 
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LBC, Shocking Footage Shows Male Mob Attacking Girl, 17, for Dressing ‘Immodestly’ at Iraqi 
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Library of Congress, Iraq: Authorities Arrest Two Social Media Creators for Indecency and 
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Manara Magazine, The Political Marginalisation of Ethnic and Religious Minorities in Iraq, 17 
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Marif D., Barzani's Failures on Freedom of Expression in Iraqi Kurdistan in: Washington 
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New Arab (The), HRW condemns sentencing Iraqi activist for three years over a Twitter post, 7 
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New Arab (The), Iraqi and Kurdish authorities under fire for 'restricting freedom of expression’, 
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New Arab (The), As Ramadan approaches in Iraq, Food prices increase amid complaints of 
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New Arab (The), Iraqi Kurdistan Doctors, Teachers, and Garbage Collectors Go on Strike over 
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New Humanitarian (The), In Iraq, a rushed camp closure fuels unease over the safety of IS 
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Shafaq, Baghdad: A Metropolis city struggles with population surges and traffic woes, 8 
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Annex 2: Terms of Reference 

Targeting of individuals 

•  Persons perceived to be opposing the state and state-affiliated actors 

▪  Specific profiles potentially interpreted by the state as opposition: 

o  Members of political opposition parties 

o  Political activists and protesters 

o  Journalists 

o  Human rights activists  

o  Persons with (perceived) affiliation to ISIL 

▪  Treatment of family members  

•  Ethno-religious minorities  

▪  Overview of situation and treatment of ethno-religious groups (e.g. Sunnis, 

Christians, Yazidis, Turkmen etc.) by different actors 

▪  Legal framework on conversion, atheism, inter-religious/inter-sect marriages  

•  Women 

▪  Overview of situation of women in both Federal Iraq and the KRI: rights, 

discrimination, gender-based violence 

▪  Honour violence and treatment of women in tribal disputes (e.g. fasilya marriages)   

▪  Treatment of single/divorced/widowed women (including single women heads of 

households) 

•  Children 

▪  Violence against children  

▪  Situation of children without support network/family or living in female headed 

households 

▪  Child recruitment by armed groups 

▪  Child labour, child marriage etc. 

▪  Access to education 

▪  Risk of statelessness 

•  LGBTIQ 

▪  Legal framework and implementation  

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▪  Treatment of LGBTIQ persons by state authorities/armed 

actors/society/family/community 

• 

Individuals perceived to transgress moral and religious norms  

▪  Treatment of individuals whose behaviour or appearance are perceived as 

transgression of moral and religious norms (e.g. tattoos, women’s clothing, striking 
men’s hairstyles, alcohol consumption) 

▪  Treatment of atheists, converts and perceived apostates or blasphemers by state 

authorities/armed actors/society/family/community 

▪  Treatment of individuals in inter-sect/inter-faith marriages  

Key Socio-economic indicators for Baghdad and Sulaymaniyah 

•  Legal and administrative requirements to enter and to settle in the respective city and 

their application in practice (including specific rules for different categories of 
individuals) 

•  Access to civil documentation and documentation requirements for access to services 

•  Freedom of movement 

•  Economy  

•  Employment 

•  Poverty 

•  Food security 

•  Healthcare 

•  Education  

•  Housing and living conditions  

•  Water and sanitation 

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