ERBIL, Kurdistan Region of Iraq – President Masoud Barzani on Wednesday said that the Kurdistan Region would “never be allowed” to become a safe haven for corrupt individuals, reiterating support for the Iraqi government’s efforts in combating corruption and describing it as a “sacred duty.”

Barzani said that the Kurdistan Region “would never be allowed to become a safe haven for corrupt individuals,” adding that no person was “exempt from accountability in this process,” in a statement carried by his office. 

The remarks came amid his meeting with the head of the Iraqi Integrity Commission Mohammed Ali al-Lami and his accompanying delegation.

Lami briefed the Kurdish leader on Baghdad’s efforts against corruption and the “squandering of public funds,” as well as the progress of the anti-corruption campaign in Iraq.

He further praised Barzani’s for the “cooperation and support provided by official institutions in the Kurdistan Region,” conveying the commission’s gratitude to the leader.

Barzani expressed his “full support” to Baghdad’s efforts to eradicate corruption and hold corrupt individuals accountable, describing it as a “sacred duty.”

Under the directive of Zaidi, the Iraqi government launched a large-scale anti-graft campaign in late June, when security forces entered Baghdad’s heavily fortified Green Zone and arrested scores of senior officials and lawmakers over alleged corruption and theft of public resources.

The campaign has targeted corruption suspects across the country, including Iraqi officials residing in the Kurdistan Region.

By late July, Iraq had seized over $125 million and 380 kilograms of gold and jewelry hidden in various places in a corruption case involving Adnan al-Jumaili, the detained oil ministry undersecretary for refining affairs.

Zaidi’s campaign has enjoyed broad support from the Iraqi public as well as myriad notable politicians and officials across the country. Some, however, have criticized the mechanisms used to pursue the suspects.