Position Paper and Legal Opinion on the Draft Iraqi Law on Combating Information Technology Crimes of 2026
A Gender-Sensitive and Legal Analysis of the Draft Iraqi Law on Information Technology Crimes of 2026.
A Summary Analytical Review of the Draft Law.
- The Temporal and Political Context of the Draft’s Revival in 2026:
At a highly sensitive and complex legislative juncture, the Iraqi Council of Representatives, in a session chaired by Speaker Haybat al-Halbousi during the second legislative chapter of the first legislative year of the sixth electoral term on July 6, 2026, concluded the first reading of the proposed “Law on Combating Information Technology Crimes.” This sudden revival of the controversial bill—submitted by the Security and Defense Committee and the Parliamentary Legal Committee—brings back to the forefront of the political and human rights scene a fierce legislative battle that has raged since the first draft of the law was introduced in 2011.
Although some members of the Parliamentary Security and Defense Committee have called on the Speaker of the House to remove the bill from the agenda to allow for a thorough review—given that it consists of sixteen pages filled with technical and criminal details that cannot be fully understood and scrutinized in just two days— parliament’s insistence on proceeding with the first reading reflects a growing political push to fill what government circles call a “legislative vacuum” that prevents the country from combating cyber extortion and organized crime.
In contrast, human rights groups, international organizations, and Iraqi civil society view these revised 2026 provisions with deep concern. Digital rights advocates agree that the draft remains laden with the same vague language and harsh physical and financial penalties that threaten to undermine freedom of expression, paralyze investigative journalism, and subject cyberspace entirely to unilateral security oversight without adequate judicial safeguards.
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