Members of Iraqi National Security Service
Basra group accused of selling newborns arrested, says security service
BASRA — Iraq’s National Security Service announced on Sunday the arrest of a group in Basra accused of trafficking newborn children.
The group, consisting of one man and three women, allegedly sold male infants for 15 million IQD ($10,593) and female infants for 7 million IQD (4,943).
Similar incidents were noted in recent months. In early September, National Security Service said it arrested three women in Diwaniyah on charges of trafficking newborns, including an unlicensed midwife accused of selling infants.
The arrests come a day after the Rusafa Criminal Court sentenced a woman to 10 years in prison after she was found with a child she had purchased for 9 million dinars ($6,322) and intended to resell.
In February, a Baghdad man was sentenced to 10 years in prison for selling his infant son after advertising him on social media. In December 2024, Baghdad Police Command reported arresting a man and a woman in Adhamiya for allegedly selling two children for four million dinars ($2,638).