Security

Iraq Forms High-Level Committee to Investigate Jurf al-Sakhar Oil Smuggling

The committee's formation is corroborated by reporting on the Nov. 12 directive, while the Iraqi Parliament has separately confirmed its investigation into the alleged smuggling operations and routes.

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Photo shows a number of oil trucks. (AP)

Iraq Jurf al-Sakhar Oil Theft OIl Smuggling in Iraq

ERBIL (Kurdistan24) - Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi has ordered a high-level committee to investigate suspected petroleum smuggling in Jurf al-Sakhar, bringing senior security and oversight officials into an investigation of alleged oil theft.

An official directive dated Thursday, Nov. 12, and numbered 2/98, was issued by the Office of the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces and signed by its director, Lieutenant General Abdul Amir Kamil al-Shammari. It instructs the committee to examine information concerning the smuggling of petroleum products within Jurf al-Sakhar and report its findings to the prime minister's office.

Authorities are also considering a security operation following reports of suspected oil theft.

Senior Security and Oversight Officials Assigned

The investigative committee will be chaired by the director general of Security and Discipline at the Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF) and include 10 other senior officials, according to the directive.

Among them are prime ministerial adviser Muayyad Saidi; the secretary for intelligence and security affairs at the commander-in-chief's office; the Federal Integrity Commission's investigations director; and the Oil Ministry's representative, the director general of petroleum products.

The deputy commander of the Federal Police and deputy head of the Counter-Terrorism Service will also serve on the committee, alongside senior Interior Ministry officials responsible for intelligence, operations and criminal evidence, and the director of the Energy Police.

The directive also instructs the Federal Police Command to assemble a convoy of military vehicles at 9 a.m. on Friday, Nov. 13, to provide security for the committee. The document does not establish that investigators have entered the area or completed an inspection.

Intelligence Findings Raise Questions

The investigation follows the disclosure of a 19-page Federal Interior Ministry intelligence report examined by Kurdistan24. Based on satellite imagery collected between 2021 and 2026, the report identified four sites in Jurf al-Sakhar and recorded 105 tanker sightings across multiple dates.

Analysts described suspected pipeline breaches, oil pits, refineries and concealed storage areas. They also mapped three possible transport routes from the sites toward Baghdad province through roads and security checkpoints.

The report concluded that oil smuggling continued under the protection of an unnamed armed faction. It did not identify that faction, independently establish how much oil was taken or calculate the financial losses.

The satellite observations themselves could not determine whether the tankers carried crude oil or refined products. Investigators sought pipeline-pressure records and further technical evidence to test their findings.

Jurf al-Sakhar has long been described as a stronghold of Kataib Hezbollah, but the intelligence report did not name the group as the operator of the alleged network. The identity of those responsible remains a question for investigators.

Potential Security Operation

Kurdistan24 correspondent Dilan Barzan reported from Baghdad on Friday that federal authorities had prepared a two-stage security plan involving an initial cordon around Jurf al-Sakhar followed by the entry of special forces to bring suspected smuggling locations under state control.

According to Barzan, Counter-Terrorism Service and Rapid Response personnel had been placed on heightened alert. He said the proposed operation had been discussed with leaders of the Coordination Framework, many of whom supported it, but a final order to proceed was still awaited.

Those preparations are distinct from the investigative committee's documented escort arrangements. Neither account establishes that an assault on the area has begun.

The controversy has coincided with the resignation of Babil Governor Ali Turki. Kurdistan24 reported a connection between the resignation and the smuggling allegations, though the precise reasons have not been independently established.

Parliamentary Scrutiny Widens

Iraq's parliament is also examining the allegations. On Wednesday, Nov. 11, Speaker Haibat al-Halbousi met parliamentary committee heads to review the findings and directed the creation of a separate temporary parliamentary panel.

That inquiry also concerns a distinct 14-page intelligence report describing an alleged eastern smuggling corridor from oil fields in Kirkuk and Sulaimani through Iran toward Afghanistan.

According to that report, some petroleum allocations intended for documented destinations in Sulaimani were allegedly diverted, while the origin of products was falsified before resale outside official channels. The claims remain intelligence allegations requiring investigation, not established judicial findings.

The executive committee must establish whether criminal activity occurred, identify those responsible and report its conclusions.

For now, the documentary record confirms an investigation order and preparations to protect investigators. It does not yet establish who controlled the alleged smuggling operation, its scale or whether security forces will carry out the separately reported plan to enter Jurf al-Sakhar.

Dr. Kamaran Aziz ,