For a small price… a huge bribe scandal to hand over Khor Abdullah to Kuwait shakes Iraq.
For a small price… a huge bribe scandal to hand over Khor Abdullah to Kuwait shakes Iraq.
5-10-2025
Information / Exclusive:
The crisis between Iraq and Kuwait over the agreement regulating navigation in the Khor Abdullah waterway is escalating amid serious allegations that Iraqi politicians are involved in accepting bribes in exchange for relinquishing control of this strategic waterway.
Background to the agreement:
In 2013, the Iraqi parliament ratified the agreement regulating navigation in the Khor Abdullah Strait with Kuwait, based on UN Security Council Resolution 833 of 1993, issued after the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait in 1990. The agreement aims to regulate navigation in this vital passageway located between the Kuwaiti islands of Warbah and Bubiyan and the Iraqi Al-Faw Peninsula.
Judicial Ruling:
In September 2023, the Federal Supreme Court of Iraq ruled the ratification law unconstitutional, citing the failure to obtain a two-thirds majority vote of the members of the Council of Representatives, as stipulated in Article 61 of the Iraqi Constitution.
Kuwaiti reactions:
Kuwait expressed its dissatisfaction with the court ruling, considering it to contain “historical inaccuracies,” and delivered a protest note to the Iraqi ambassador.
Investigations and accusations:
Iraqi MP Alia Nassif sparked widespread controversy by accusing Haider al-Abadi’s government of granting Khor Abdullah to Kuwait, describing it as “a betrayal of Iraq and its people.”
The Iraqi Parliament’s position:
174 members of the Iraqi Parliament, the majority of whom are members of the Coordination Framework, demanded that a copy of the Federal Court’s ruling be deposited with the United Nations and the International Maritime Organization, in order to preserve “Iraq’s historical right to Khor Abdullah.”
Iraqi government position:
Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani affirmed Iraq’s commitment to relevant UN Security Council resolutions and the principles of international law, emphasizing the importance of respecting agreements signed with Kuwait.
Investigations and controversy surrounding the Khor Abdullah agreement are irritating Iraqis amid accusations that Iraqi politicians were involved in receiving bribes on behalf of Kuwait. While the Iraqi government seeks to de-escalate and adhere to international agreements, Parliament is demanding that those involved be held accountable and that Iraqi sovereignty be preserved.
On Saturday, Ali al-Zubaidi, a member of the “We Build” coalition, leveled scathing accusations against Mohammed al-Halbousi, leader of the Progress Party, accusing him of involvement in suspicious deals with Kuwait related to the Khor Abdullah port.
Al-Zubaidi told Al-Maalouma News Agency that “Al-Halbousi and some influential Sunni figures are involved in collusion with official Kuwaiti parties, as part of a plan aimed at weakening Iraq’s sovereignty and selling its vital lands under the cover of bilateral agreements.”
He pointed out that “the Khor Abdullah deal was negotiated through backdoor political channels, in exchange for personal interests, at a time when Iraq is suffering from a sovereignty crisis and economic decline.
” Al-Zubaidi called on “the Iraqi judiciary to hold accountable all those involved in this national crime, especially Halbousi, who has become a symbol of subservience and the neglect of Iraq’s supreme interests.”
Earlier, Member of Parliament Mohammed Radhi Sultan confirmed that the pressure exerted by Kuwait and the Gulf Cooperation Council countries to have the Federal Court retract its decision declaring the Khor Abdullah Agreement unconstitutional is doomed to fail, due to the Iraqi street’s rejection of this agreement.
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