Sudani Calls on Europe to Support Iraq’s Anti-Corruption Efforts

Sudani during his meeting with the President of the European Commission on Saturday. (The Iraqi premiership on Twitter)
Sudani during his meeting with the President of the European Commission on Saturday. (The Iraqi premiership on Twitter)
TT
20

Sudani Calls on Europe to Support Iraq’s Anti-Corruption Efforts

Sudani during his meeting with the President of the European Commission on Saturday. (The Iraqi premiership on Twitter)
Sudani during his meeting with the President of the European Commission on Saturday. (The Iraqi premiership on Twitter)

Iraqi Prime Minister Muhammad Shia Al-Sudani has called on the European Union to support the government's anti-corruption efforts.

He also urged the global police agency Interpol to facilitate the extradition of wanted persons.

Al-Sudani met on Saturday with the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, in Munich and they discussed Iraq’s wish to hold partnerships with the EU countries in various fields.

Sudani pointed out that his meetings with the leaders of Germany, France, and Italy align with the endeavors for economic partnerships and bonds of cooperation to face economic challenges and the effects of climate change and to enhance stability and sustainable development, the Media Office of the Prime Minister said in a statement.

He also highlighted the agreement between the Iraqi Ministry of Finance and the European Investment Bank and the openness to the investments of European companies and their contribution to the public service sector in Iraq.

"Looking forward to advancing our EU-Iraq partnership. We will engage further in deepening our cooperation, including in support of your ambitious domestic reform agenda and on clean energy," von der Leyen said in a tweet.

Sudani also met with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken. They discussed the bilateral ties and ways to reinforce them.

The Iraqi PM reiterated that his government prioritizes economic reforms and focuses on advancing the energy sector and forming joint ventures for investment and growth in the gas industry.

Al-Sudani highlighted Iraq’s readiness to step up cooperation with the US in the fight against terrorism in the context of offering instruction, counsel, and information sharing to the Iraqi security forces while upholding Iraq’s independence and sovereignty.

Blinken applauded the Iraqi government’s ambitions for reform and growth as well as its efforts to prioritize the energy sector in its development initiatives.

He reiterated support for the Iraqi government’s progressive improvement and reform objectives across a range of levels and areas, as well as the US government’s gratitude for Iraq’s regional contribution to greater stability.

Moreover, Al-Sudani discussed with the Secretary-General of the International Criminal Police Organization, Interpol, Jurgen Stock, bolstering bilateral cooperation in the restoration of stolen public money.

Sudani stressed that the government's procedures require cooperation from the organization, especially in the issue of dealing with requests submitted regarding financial crimes.

The PM called on Interpol to provide support in the field of training and capacity building for the cadres working at the headquarters and the newly established Interpol offices at the border crossings, as well as cooperation in the field of information exchange, and in the field of supporting financial crime investigations related to money laundering and terrorist financing, and the Financial Action Task Force (FATF).

For his part, Stock expressed the organization’s willingness to cooperate with Iraq and work on restoring the looted funds and the persons wanted in corruption cases.

Furthermore, US Ambassador to Iraq Alina Romanowski said during the second Oil and Gas Show conference in Baghdad that American firms are willing to invest in Iraq and expand cooperation in the energy sector.



94 Palestinians Killed in Gaza, Including 45 People Waiting for Aid

A Palestinian inspects the damage at a school sheltering displaced people, following an overnight Israeli airstrike, in Gaza City, July 3, 2025. REUTERS/Dawoud Abu Alkas
A Palestinian inspects the damage at a school sheltering displaced people, following an overnight Israeli airstrike, in Gaza City, July 3, 2025. REUTERS/Dawoud Abu Alkas
TT
20

94 Palestinians Killed in Gaza, Including 45 People Waiting for Aid

A Palestinian inspects the damage at a school sheltering displaced people, following an overnight Israeli airstrike, in Gaza City, July 3, 2025. REUTERS/Dawoud Abu Alkas
A Palestinian inspects the damage at a school sheltering displaced people, following an overnight Israeli airstrike, in Gaza City, July 3, 2025. REUTERS/Dawoud Abu Alkas

Airstrikes and shootings killed 94 Palestinians in Gaza overnight, including 45 while attempting to get much-needed humanitarian aid, hospitals and the Health Ministry said Thursday.

Israel’s military did not have immediate comment on the strikes, The Associated Press reported.

Five people were killed while outside sites associated with the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, the newly created, secretive American organization backed by Israel to feed the Gaza Strip’s population, while 40 others were killed waiting for aid trucks in other locations across the Gaza Strip.

Dozens of people were killed in airstrikes that pounded the Strip Wednesday night and Thursday morning, including 15 people killed in strikes that hit tents in the sprawling Muwasi zone, where many displaced Palestinians are sheltering, and a strike on a school in Gaza City sheltering displaced people.

Gaza’s Health Ministry said the number of Palestinians killed in Gaza has passed 57,000, including 223 missing people who have been declared dead. The ministry doesn’t differentiate between civilians and combatants in its death count but says that more than half of the dead are women and children.

The deaths come as Israel and Hamas inch closer to a possible ceasefire that would end the 21-month war.

Trump said Tuesday that Israel had agreed on terms for a 60-day ceasefire in Gaza and urged Hamas to accept the deal before conditions worsen. But Hamas’ response, which emphasized its demand that the war end, raised questions about whether the latest offer could materialize into an actual pause in fighting.

The Israeli military blames Hamas for the civilian casualties because it operates from populated areas. The military said it targeted Hamas members and rocket launchers in northern Gaza that launched rockets towards Israel on Wednesday.

The war began on Oct. 7, 2023, when Hamas-led militants attacked southern Israel, killing 1,200 people and taking roughly 250 hostages.

The war has left the coastal Palestinian territory in ruins, with much of the urban landscape flattened in the fighting. More than 90% of Gaza’s 2.3 million population has been displaced, often multiple times. And the war has sparked a humanitarian crisis in Gaza, leaving hundreds of thousands of people hungry.