Iraqi Legal Committee: Sunni forces reject Property Restitution Law in its current form

Shafaq News/ On Saturday, Deputy Chairman of the Iraqi Parliament's Legal Committee, Murtadha Al-Saadi, stated that Sunni Arab forces, particularly Kirkuk MPs, oppose the passage of the Property Restitution Law in its current form.

The Property Law, along with amendments to the Personal Status Law and the General Amnesty Law, is among several contentious bills stalled in the Iraqi Parliament due to disagreements among Shiite, Kurdish, and Sunni factions.

Al-Saadi told Shafaq News Agency, “Some political blocs hold reservations about the draft of the Property Restitution Law,” stressing that political forces have not yet agreed on its passage in its current form in Parliament.

“Some political blocs support the government's version of the law, while others favor the amendments introduced in Parliament,” he clarified.

Al-Saadi added that several provisions of the Property Law, linked to decisions of the dissolved Revolutionary Command Council, remain unresolved, explaining, “Sunni forces, particularly Kirkuk MPs, oppose certain articles and the law’s passage in Parliament.”

The Property Restoration Bill aims to return properties to individuals affected by the dissolved Revolutionary Command Council's decisions. Kurdish MPs and officials state that the bill seeks to restore property rights to Kurdish and Turkmen owners whose lands were seized by eight Revolutionary Command Council decisions between 1975 and 1979, which targeted demographic changes in disputed areas.