Iraqi Judge Says Maliki's Government Shields Officials Accused of Corruption

Iraqi Judge Says Maliki's Government Shields Officials Accused of Corruption

www.nytimes.com

Widespread corruption in Iraq stretches into the government of Prime Minister Nuri Kamal al-Maliki, an Iraqi investigating judge told United States lawmakers on Thursday, and an American official said that efforts by the United States to combat the problem were inadequate.

Judge Radhi Hamza al-Radhi, who was named by the United States in 2004 to lead the Iraqi Commission on Public Integrity, said his agency estimated that corruption had cost the Iraqi government up to $18 billion.

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Things must being going swell over there.
Corruption in Maliki's government? Ya don't say..

Washington Post source:

The Iraqi government led by Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki has thwarted investigations into corruption at the top levels of his administration, including probes of his relatives, while nearly four dozen anti-corruption employees or their family members have been brutally murdered, the former top Iraqi corruption investigator told a House panel yesterday.

The ones who are trying to fight this corruption are being killed,
and from the looks of it, the US is more concerned with saving face.

AP source:

WASHINGTON (AP) — A State Department official said Thursday corruption in Iraq was serious, but he refused to say whether Iraq's prime minister was involved or capable of addressing the problem.

Larry Butler, deputy assistant secretary of state for Near East Affairs, told a House committee that divulging such information could damage U.S. relations — an assertion that enraged congressional Democrats.

Let's see how long it takes them to do something about this.

www.nytimes.com
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