BAGHDAD: The Iraqi judicial authorities issued a decision on Sunday to confiscate the properties of former Oil Minister Ihsan Abdul-Jabbar Ismail on charges of abuse of office and fraud, reported Xinhua quoting an Iraqi News Agency (INA) report.
The decision came after an investigative court accused Ismail of abusing his position and accepting bribes from some investors that had contracts with the Oil Ministry, the agency quoted a judicial source as saying.
Ismail served as Minister of Oil in 2020 in the government of former Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi. Before that, he was the Director General of the state-owned Basra Oil Company.
According to media reports earlier this year, the Iraqi judiciary had looked into allegations against Ismail of corruption, including the seizure and illegal sale of oil ministry-owned lands in Baghdad and the southern city of Basra, as well as allegations that he had demanded payments from foreign firms in exchange for awarding contracts. – BERNAMA-XINHUA
