‘Theft of the century’ losses far higher than reported, parliamentary committee says

BAGHDAD — Iraq’s parliamentary Integrity Committee said Tuesday that investigations into the corruption case widely known as the “theft of the century” had found embezzled funds totaling nearly 8 trillion dinars ($5.2 billion), far exceeding the previously cited figure of $2.5 billion.

Committee member Talib al-Baydhani told state-run newspaper Al-Sabah that around 30 individuals were linked to the case and that efforts to recover stolen funds inside and outside Iraq were continuing in coordination with the Federal Commission of Integrity. He said some funds had already been recovered while additional amounts remained abroad, requiring further action. He added that the issue required cooperation between the committee and the prime minister, who had described the case as a government priority.

The “theft of the century” case involves the embezzlement of tax deposit funds from the General Commission for Taxes and emerged publicly in 2022. In November 2024, the Karkh Criminal Court sentenced main defendant Nur Zuheir to 10 years in prison, Raed Jouhi — former head of the office of ex-Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi — to six years, and former parliamentary finance committee head Haitham al-Jubouri to three years.

Zuheir has never been apprehended. He was initially arrested in 2022 but released after returning just 5% of the allegedly embezzled funds, and has repeatedly denied the charges. In August 2024 he appeared on Sharqiya TV pledging to attend a scheduled trial session in Baghdad, which he did not. An Iraqi court subsequently issued a new arrest warrant.