ERBIL, Kurdistan Region of Iraq – Iraqi authorities arrested the leader of the prominent Sunni Azm Alliance, Muthanna al-Samarrai, along with 46 other lawmakers and officials on Sunday as part of a sweeping anti-corruption crackdown following overnight raids in Baghdad's heavily fortified Green Zone.

Iraqi state media confirmed the arrest of Samarrai, a prominent politician and businessman who leads the Sunni Azm Alliance, saying he was among 47 people detained “on corruption charges.”

Azm holds 15 seats in the Iraqi parliament. State media identified four Azm lawmakers among those arrested: Mohammed al-Karbouli, Ziad al-Janabi, Hind al-Abbasi, and Mudhar al-Karawi.

Several of the lawmakers, including Janabi, former chairman of the parliamentary integrity committee, and Alia Nassif, his deputy, have been longtime parliamentarians and are notorious for links to corruption. Karbouli, also in the list, has also long had a controversial reputation.

Lawmaker Mohammed Jamil al-Mayahi was also arrested, according to state media. He was the former governor of Wasit and resigned over a deadly mall fire in June of last year that killed some 80 people.

“Operations to pursue corrupt officials are ongoing in Baghdad and the provinces,” state media said, citing a senior official.

Iraqi special security forces entered Baghdad's Green Zone overnight and imposed a lockdown as part of what officials described as a major anti-corruption campaign launched under recently appointed Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi. The operation reportedly targeted senior politicians and government officials. 

Videos circulating on social media showed heavily armored vehicles and tanks entering the high-security district in the early hours of Sunday as security forces sealed off the area.

State media also identified several other officials arrested in the raids, including Oil Ministry Undersecretary Ali Ma'arij al-Bahadli.

Ibrahim al-Sumaidaie, a senior advisor to former Prime Minister Mohammed Shia’ al-Sudani, was also arrested, according to state media.

Iraq’s Federal Integrity Commission said in a statement that it had begun taking “decisive measures to implement the judicial arrest warrants issued against a number of individuals accused of misappropriating public funds.”

The crackdown follows the discovery of an alleged embezzlement scheme involving more than $85 million, which led to the arrest of former Deputy Oil Minister Adnan al-Jumaili in May.

Earlier in June, the Integrity Commission also announced it had uncovered an embezzlement case involving nearly two billion Iraqi dinars in Diyala's electricity directorate, resulting in the dismissal of four senior officials.

Upon taking office in May, Zaidi pledged that his government would “work vigorously” to protect public funds, describing corruption as an obstacle to the country's development.

“We will work to consolidate security and stability, protect Iraq's sovereignty, and strengthen our Arab, regional, and international relations,” the prime minister said at the time.

Iraq has long struggled with widespread corruption and bribery. The country ranked 140th out of 180 countries in Transparency International's 2024 Corruption Perceptions Index, despite repeated government pledges to combat corruption.