Al-Ameri in the parliament to weigh in property recovery in disputed territories: source

Shafaq News/ Hadi al-Amiri, head of the committee tasked with implementing Article 140 of the Iraqi constitution, held talks in the parliament on Monday to discuss the potential passage of a law to return properties to their original owners, according to a parliamentary source.

"Al-Amiri has been in parliament since 1 p.m., meeting with the acting speaker, deputy speaker, and political bloc leaders, along with committee members and lawmakers from Kirkuk," the source said.

The discussions centered on the proposed law aimed at returning confiscated properties, especially in the disputed governorate of Kirkuk. Participants agreed to withhold details of the meeting from the media, including whether there was consensus on moving the law forward.

"Another meeting took place after 3:30 p.m. in the office of the acting speaker, Mohsen al-Mandalawi, to explore further steps on whether the law will be approved," the source added.

Parliament is scheduled to vote on a draft law addressing property ownership in disputed areas, notably Kirkuk, which has long been a flashpoint between different ethnic groups. The law seeks to return properties confiscated through a series of Revolutionary Command Council decisions from 1975 to 1979.

Kurdish and Turkmen representatives say the law focuses on restoring properties to their rightful owners, mainly Kurds and Turkmen, whose lands were taken as part of demographic shifts under the previous regime.

The session’s agenda also includes a second reading of amendments to the Personal Status Law and the General Amnesty Law.