January 5^th, 2024

In a statement published today, the Department said that the Iraqi police raids included 15 governorates as the following: Baghdad got the biggest number 405, then Basra: 271, Diyala: 136, Salahddeen: 132, Babel: 116, Ninava: 104, Karbala: 99, Misan: 46, wasit and Tamim: 32 for each, Dhi Qar: 16,  Anbar: 10, Qadissiya and Muthanna: 7 for each and finally 2 detainees in Najaf.

Human Rights Department in the Association of Muslim Scholars in Iraq reiterated that the report is just based on the official announcement and statistics of current Interior and Defense Ministries. While the arrests of the so-called Ministry of National Security, and the special security forces linked to the office of the Prime Minister himself are not included in these statistics. Not included too the arbitrary arrests conducted by the militias, the Peshmarga forces (Kurdish militias) who are indeed carrying out similar kinds of indiscriminate attacks and arrest campaigns.

Once again, the Association of Muslim Scholars in Iraq asked human rights organizations and relevant international organizations, the Islamic Cooperation Organization, and the Arab League to intervene in order to stop these violations and arrests, expose its perpetrators, and also to release all the innocent detainees.  AMSI holds the ongoing occupation and its current government fully responsible for these campaigns which turned Iraq into a big prison where brutal crimes are being committed, ironically, in the name of freedom and democracy.