At dawn on Sunday, June 28, the Green Zone in the center of the Iraqi capital Baghdad witnessed a major security deployment amid reports of arrests of a number of senior officials.
Video footage showed gunfire in the Green Zone and the deployment of Iraqi security forces and army units in the middle of the area, which includes key government buildings and officials' homes.
Iraqi activists have reported the arrest of a number of political leaders in Iraq whose names have been mentioned in files related to corruption and abuse of influence.
Heavy military deployment
Special forces, backed by tanks and armored vehicles, imposed a tight cordon around the Green Zone, completely blocking roads leading to it, preventing entry and exit. Elite units were stationed around sovereign headquarters, from the General Secretariat of the Council of Ministers to parliament and sensitive political headquarters, in a scene that reflected the level of escalating security tension.
Activists said that this security move came within the framework of Ali al-Zaidi's campaign against political and financial influence networks, in conjunction with the implementation of a government plan that extends for 30 days to restrict weapons to the state and disengage political factions from their military wings by restricting weapons.
Widespread Arrest Campaign
According to Iraqi security sources, the arrests were carried out under judicial arrest warrants as part of the government's major financial corruption investigations, including the arrests of Deputy Oil Minister for Liquidation Affairs Adnan Hamad Hammoud, who is accused of corruption, as well as a senior official in the National Security Agency who is facing charges of bribery and graft.
The raids extended to the offices and protections of prominent political figures and deputies, including the head of a political alliance, against the background of their association with suspicious deals in the "Adnan al-Jumaili" file.
So far, at the time of writing this news, no detailed official statement has been issued clarifying the list of detainees or the amount of money recovered, while Baghdad remains under the impact of a hot night that may carry additional developments in the coming hours.
Sharp political division after "Green Zone Night"
The campaign of arrests and the sudden military deployment inside the Green Zone caused a violent political shock and a clear division in the Iraqi scene, as the reactions of the forces and blocs varied between anxiety and warning, absolute support, and cautious anticipation.
The Coordination Framework called for respecting the legal and constitutional contexts at a time when a state of apprehension prevails, especially since some of the targeted names are linked to circles of influence attributed to it, while warning against turning the fight against corruption into a tool to liquidate opponents or reshape balances within the government.
On the other hand, the independent blocs and civil forces welcomed what they described as the "bold call" of Prime Minister Ali Faleh al-Zaidi, considering that the entry of special forces into the Green Zone and the arrest of the "whales of corruption" is a popular demand that has been postponed for years.
She called for the expansion of the campaign and the completion of the files of the recovery of funds and the inventory of weapons, stressing the need not to back down in the face of partisan pressures.
Sunni and Kurdish forces have opted to distance themselves, declaring their principled support for law enforcement and fighting corruption, but stressing that these sudden moves should not destabilize security or harm the political consensus that led to the formation of the current government.
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