Iraq’s Commission of Integrity announced it has recovered more than $3 million in embezzled funds belonging to the Baghdad Municipality, following a final ruling by the Lebanese judiciary in favor of the Iraqi government.
The commission said the recovery was carried out through close coordination with the Iraqi Embassy in Beirut, which facilitated enforcement of the Lebanese court decision. The recovered amount, $3,014,457, was deposited into the embassy’s account at Rafidain Bank’s Beirut branch and transferred to Iraq via the SWIFT international banking system.
The authority added that legal procedures are continuing to transfer ownership of a residential apartment in a prime area of Lebanon, which was purchased using the embezzled funds. These steps are at an advanced stage and are being coordinated with the Ministry of Justice and the Iraqi Embassy in Beirut.
The recovered money is part of a broader embezzlement case involving approximately IQD 17 billion (about $13 million) stolen from the Baghdad Municipality.
According to the commission, the main convicted individual in the case, Zina Saud, was arrested in Lebanon in 2010 while attempting to flee the country. She was later sentenced to life imprisonment, with a ruling to confiscate all her movable and immovable assets inside and outside Iraq.
The Commission of Integrity noted that earlier efforts, in cooperation with domestic and international authorities, had already led to the recovery of $9.38 million, which had been deposited in five Lebanese banks under false names.
