An Iraqi court on Wednesday sentenced two female MPs to seven years in prison for illicit enrichment, in one of the most high-profile convictions since the government launched a sweeping campaign against corruption.
The anti-corruption court in Baghdad also ordered Alia Nassif Jassim and Ashwaq Salim Hassan to repay millions of dollars' worth of illicit gains.
The Federal Commission of Integrity announced the verdict against the two women, who were among dozens of officials detained in June raids as part of a crackdown launched by Prime Minister Ali Al Zaidi.
Ms Jassim, a senior Shiite lawmaker, was ordered to return about 14.24 billion Iraqi dinars and nearly $12.44 million, and pay a fine equivalent to the total. Ms Hassan was ordered her to repay 2.11 billion dinars, nearly $2.9 million and the equivalent fine.
Iraqi authorities have made dozens of arrests and seized millions of dollars in cash, along with gold and other valuables, in investigations connected to Adnan Al Jumaili, an Oil Ministry official detained at the start of Mr Al Zaidi's anti-corruption campaign.
Last month, the court sentenced the former deputy oil minister for distribution affairs, Ali Al Bahadli, and a former MP, Talal Al Zubaie, to seven years in prison and issued fines.
The latest sentences come amid claims that the government's much-touted anti-corruption campaign is losing momentum. Mr Al Zaidi declared it a priority when he took office in May, initiating high-profile arrests, asset recovery and a special court for corruption cases.
However, the drive has dwindled in recent weeks under intense political pressure from powerful parties within the ruling Co-ordination Framework. Critics say the campaign has been selective, sparing figures close to influential parties while targeting opponents, and has stalled as consensus politics and deals have re-emerged.
The conviction of two sitting parliamentarians is therefore seen as an attempt to restore credibility to the judicial anti-corruption effort.
In a separate ruling, the Karkh Criminal Court sentenced to death the man who killed a senior police officer and a police commissioner during a slum clearance operation in Baghdad last month.
The court issued two death sentences against the killer of police commander Brig Gen Hisham Talla, director of the Baghdad Municipality Police Department, and Commissioner Khalid Abbas. The killer opened fire on the officers while they were on duty in a detachment assigned to remove illegal encroachments on land in the Dora area of the capital, the court said in a statement.
The killings shocked the public and again highlighted the problems of illegal encroachment on to public and private land, a property market dominated by land mafias mostly linked to politicians and militias, and the state's inconsistent approach to dealing with the issue.
