Middle East & Africa | A record bank heist

The plot thickens over Iraq’s bank heist

The exposure of crookery surrounding Iraq’s tax revenues has rattled rulers, past and present

 Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani
Image: Getty Images
|Baghdad

Spurred by a recent exposé in The Economist’s sister publication, 1843, of the theft of $2.5bn of state funds, the Iraqi authorities have called on America, Britain and Interpol to help arrest and extradite suspects who have sought refuge abroad. Four senior men in Iraq’s previous government under Mustafa al-Kadhimi are wanted. An investigation had been launched by his government last year, but then the case was largely left to languish, despite promises of action by Muhammad al-Sudani, his successor as prime minister.

This article appeared in the Middle East & Africa section of the print edition under the headline “Catch the thieves”

From the August 12th 2023 edition

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