12 May 2025
The Iraqi government has launched an investigation into alleged abuse at a Baghdad prison after leaked footage emerged online showing inmates being beaten, humiliated, and, according to activists, sexually assaulted by fellow detainees.
While The New Arab could not verify the footage, Iraq’s justice ministry spokesperson Ahmed Al-Luaibi confirmed the incidents took place, telling state media that the videos, which surfaced on social platforms, were “mostly old” but did not specify when they were filmed.
Al-Luaibi added that the ministry had formed a committee to investigate the matter and would pursue legal action to deter further violations in the prison system.
The videos, reportedly recorded inside Taji Central Prison in Baghdad, appear to show prisoners from the capital assaulting fellow inmates from Najaf province. Activists allege the abuse included sexual violence, beatings with sharp objects, and sectarian insults.
Some of the inmates shown in the footage appear to be using mobile phones and posting content to social media platforms, including TikTok, raising concerns about security breaches and oversight failures inside Iraqi prisons.
The leaks have triggered widespread anger among the public and renewed criticism of Iraq’s prison conditions, which rights groups have long described as overcrowded, poorly supervised and rife with abuse.
Justice Minister Khalid Shwani confirmed he dismissed the director of Taji Prison in January, around the time the abuses are believed to have taken place.
“Militias control many Iraqi prisons,” said a civil society activist, who asked not to be named. “The strong abuse the weak with impunity. Even some prison officers fear intervening, knowing the consequences outside the prison walls.”
Journalists and activists have described a climate of impunity and a lack of accountability.
Source: thenewarab
