Qadisiyah governors: a former governor detained, a governor suspended after IQD 17 billion of contracts were signed, and successive summonses (from 2019 to 2026)
In November 2019 the Diwaniyah integrity investigation court ordered the detention of former Qadisiyah governor Sami al-Hasnawi over a lease of 11 dunams for a medical complex at IQD 35 million a year; experts put the damage at nearly IQD 2 billion. In December 2019 the governor then in office was summoned over vehicle contracts with IQD 23 billion of overpricing, and an arrest warrant was issued for the head of the provincial council. In December 2022 the court summoned Governor Zuhair Ali al-Shaalan over land given to families of martyrs in an unserviced area and over contracts made by direct invitation. On 10 January 2023 Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani suspended him, citing investigation files; the next day the Integrity Commission said tenders worth more than IQD 17 billion had been signed after the suspension with earlier dates. Al-Shaalan denied any manipulation. He was summoned again over pressure on a landholder to give up 500 dunams. An earlier governor was summoned over a displaced-persons camp (IQD 10 billion) and the Ghammas hospital. In 2026 the provincial council questioned Governor Abbas al-Zamili and referred his file to the Integrity Commission.
- Period
- From 2015 to July 2026
- Sector
- Local government and reconstructionProvincial governors and council (Qadisiyah): contracts, land and leases
- Kind of case
- Criminal prosecution
- Jurisdiction
- Federal Iraq
How the money moved
Public land leased far below its value, overpriced vehicle purchases, contracts by direct invitation, tenders signed after a suspension order with earlier dates, and pressure on a landholder over a lease renewal, according to the Integrity Commission and the courts.
What happened
Sami al-Hasnawi: detained under Article 340 (November 2019). Head of the provincial council in 2019: arrest warrant and asset seizure. Zuhair Ali al-Shaalan: summoned twice (December 2022), suspended by the Prime Minister (10 January 2023), summoned again (January 2023). An earlier governor: summoned (September and December 2022, October 2023). Abbas al-Zamili: questioned by the council, file referred (2026). No verdict is on record as of 19 October 2026.
Open questions
- Outcome of the detention of Sami al-Hasnawi and of the cases against Zuhair Ali al-Shaalan.
- Names of the governor summoned in December 2019, of the earlier governor and of the 2019 council head.
- Whether the Integrity Commission opened a case on the 2024 Arbaeen spending.
People and companies
| Name | Role in the case | Legal status | Detail | As of |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Head of the Qadisiyah provincial council in 2019 (unnamed) رئيس مجلس محافظة القادسية عام 2019 (لم يُذكر اسمه) | Head of the Qadisiyah provincial council | Charged or wanted | The Integrity Commission said in December 2019 that an arrest warrant had been issued against the head of the provincial council under Article 339; Asharq Al-Awsat reported in November 2019 that the Diwaniyah criminal court had seized his property. Not named; the charge's subject and the outcome are not on record. | 19 October 2026 |
| Sami al-Hasnawi سامي الحسناوي | Governor of Qadisiyah (former) | Arrested | The Diwaniyah integrity investigation court ordered his detention under Article 340 over a lease (musataha) of 11 dunams in the city centre for a medical complex at IQD 35 million a year; experts put the damage at nearly IQD 2 billion (Integrity Commission statement, 3 November 2019, with his name given by Shafaq News). The outcome was not found as of 19 October 2026. | 19 October 2026 |
| Zuhair Ali al-Shaalan زهير علي الشعلان | Governor of Qadisiyah (suspended in January 2023) | Disciplined by an official body | Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani suspended him on 10 January 2023, citing investigation files on suspected administrative and financial corruption before the courts. The next day the Integrity Commission said tenders worth more than IQD 17 billion had been signed after the suspension with earlier dates and without the signatures of the central committees; he denied any manipulation and said the order reached his office on 11 January. The Diwaniyah court summoned him in December 2022 over land given to families of martyrs and the wounded in an unserviced area (Article 331) and over contracts made by direct invitation before the planning ministry's approval (Article 340), and in January 2023 over pressing a man to give up 500 dunams in return for renewing his farm lease (Article 331). No charge or verdict is on record as of 19 October 2026. | 19 October 2026 |
| Abbas al-Zamili عباس الزاملي | Governor of Qadisiyah (in office in 2026) | Accused by an official body | A member of the Qadisiyah provincial council told Rudaw on 4 July 2026 that an audit committee had found serious violations in the spending of IQD 2,877,570,000 allotted in 2024 for the Arbaeen pilgrimage, and that the council had questioned the governor and referred his file to the Prime Minister's office, the Integrity Commission and the Board of Supreme Audit. Shafaq News reported, citing an unnamed source, that the council voted on 6 January 2026 to suspend him for 30 days. No charge is on record as of 19 October 2026. | 19 October 2026 |
| Earlier governor of Qadisiyah summoned in 2022 and 2023 (unnamed) محافظ الديوانية الأسبق المستقدم في عامي 2022 و2023 (لم يُذكر اسمه) | Governor of Qadisiyah (earlier); head of the subcommittee for sheltering displaced persons | Under investigation | The Diwaniyah integrity investigation court summoned an earlier governor in September 2022 over the building of a displaced-persons camp of 800 caravans for IQD 10 billion, and in October 2023 over contracting and advances for the Ghammas hospital and spending beyond the allocations of 2015, 2017 and 2018 (Article 331). In December 2022 a former governor was summoned over the al-Hamza al-Sharqi fruit market contract criticised by the Board of Supreme Audit. Not named; the summonses may concern more than one person. | 19 October 2026 |
| Governor of Qadisiyah in December 2019 (unnamed) محافظ الديوانية في كانون الأول 2019 (لم يُذكر اسمه) | Governor of Qadisiyah (in office in December 2019) | Under investigation | The Diwaniyah integrity investigation court summoned the governor then in office under Article 340 over vehicle purchase contracts for provincial departments in which the Integrity Commission found overpricing, with a total contract value of IQD 23 billion (statement of 11 December 2019). Not named; no later step is on record. | 19 October 2026 |
Sources
- Shafaq News3 November 2019Official statement reported by the mediaTier B
النزاهة تكشف تفاصيل قرار توقيف محافظ الديوانية السابق
Original addressاعلنت هيأة النزاهة عن تفاصيل قرار توقيف محافظ الديوانية السابق سامي الحسناوي، مبينة أن المتهم تسبب بهدر مبلغ قدره أكثر ... قيمة الإيجار السنوي لمساحة الأرض البالغة 11 دونماً المخصصة
- Shafaq News11 December 2019Official statement reported by the mediaTier B
صدور امراستقدام بحق محافظ الديوانية الحالي بسبب عقود شراء
Original addressمجموع مبالغ العقود التي وُجِدَت مغالاة في أسعارها بلغت (23,000,000,000) مليار دينار؛ ... صدور أمر قبض وتحرٍّ بحق رئيس مجلس المحافظة
- Alsumaria News8 September 2022Official statement reported by the mediaTier B
النزاهة تستقدم محافظ الديوانية الأسبق إثر مخالفته بمشروع لإيواء النازحين
Original addressعن المُخالفات التي رافقت إنشاء مجمعٍ لإيواء النازحين يحتوي على (800) كرفانٍ بمبلغ (10,000,000,000)
- 9645 December 2022Official statement reported by the mediaTier B
هيئة النزاهة: محافظ الديوانية يوزع "أسوأ الأراضي" على الشهداء والجرحى
Original addressأصدرت أمراً باستقدام مُحافظ الديوانيَّة الحالي ومدير بلديَّة الديوانيَّة السابق؛ على خلفيَّة شكوى ذوي الشهداء والجرحى بشأن المُخالفات المرتكبة في
- Shafaq News14 December 2022Official statement reported by the mediaTier B
استقدام محافظ الديوانية الحالي على خلفية خروقات وإضرار بالمال العام
Original addressعن صدور أمر استقدام بحق محافظ الديوانيَّة الحالي زهير علي الشعلان؛ على خلفيَّة خروقات وإضرار بالمال العام. وأفادت
- 96427 December 2022Official statement reported by the mediaTier B
النزاهة تستقدم 3 محافظين سابقين لبابل والديوانية
Original addressقرَّرت استقدام محافظ الديوانية السابق، في قضيَّة المُخالفات التي وردت في تقرير ديوان الرقابة الماليَّة الاتحادي بخصوص العقد الخاصِّ بإنشاء علوة الفواكه
- 96410 January 2023Government statementTier B
رئيس الوزراء يوجّه بسحب يد محافظ الديوانية إثر قضايا فساد إداري ومالي
Original addressأصدر رئيس مجلس الوزراء محمد شياع السوداني، اليوم الثلاثاء، أمراً بسحب يد محافظ الديوانية السيد زهير علي الشعلان، وذلك لوجود ملفات تحقيقية بحقه عن شبهات فساد
- 96411 January 2023Official statement reported by the mediaTier B
محافظ الديوانية وقع على عقود بأكثر من 17 مليار بعد إقالته
Original addressأقدم محافظ الديوانيَّة على توقيع عقود مناقصات بعد قرار سحب يده، إذ كانت قيمة تلك المناقصات أكثر من
- 96418 January 2023Official statement reported by the mediaTier B
النزاهة تستقدم محافظ الديوانية: حاول الضغط للاستيلاء على 500 دونم
Original addressعلى خلفية قيامه بالضغط ومساومة أحد الأشخاص للتنازل عن مساحة من الأرض تقدر مساحتها بـ (500) دونم، مقابل قيام المحافظ
- 96428 October 2023Official statement reported by the mediaTier B
النزاهة: استقدام محافظ الديوانية الأسبق لتجاوزه على التخصيصات المالية
Original addressبتهمة ارتكاب مخالفات في إجراءات التعاقد ومنح السلف الخاصة بمستشفى (غماس)، فضلاً عن التجاوز على التخصيصات الماليَّة للأعوام
- Shafaq News (English)3 November 2019Press reportTier D
Governor arrested for corruption cases
Original addressThe source told Shafaq News that Diwaniya governor ,Sami al-Hasnawi was arrested in connection
- Asharq Al-Awsat21 November 2019Press reportTier D
«النزاهة» العراقية تصدر أوامر قبض ضد مسؤولين متهمين بالفساد
Original addressكانت محكمة جنايات بابل أصدرت الأحد الماضي، أمراً بإلقاء القبض على محافظ بابل كرار العبادي، ... أصدرت محكمة جنايات الديوانية قراراً بحجز الأموال المنقولة وغير المنقولة لرئيس مجلس ... عن صدور أمر استقدام بحق 13 عضواً من مجلس محافظة كركوك
- The National10 January 2023Press reportTier D
Iraq suspends Diwaniyah governor amid corruption inquiry
Original addresshas suspended Diwaniyah governor Zuhair Al Shaalan.
- Shafaq News11 January 2023Press reportTier D
محافظ الديوانية يرد على النزاهة: قرار سحب اليد وصل متأخراً
Original addressنؤكد هنا بعدم ثبوت اي تلاعب لدى الهيئة وإنما جميعها كانت إجراءات
- Shafaq News6 January 2026Press reportTier D
في جلسة طارئة.. مجلس الديوانية يسحب يد المحافظ بسبب "شبهات فساد"
Original addressوصوّت على قرار سحب يد المحافظ لمدة 30 يوماً
- Rudaw Arabic4 July 2026Press reportTier D
اتهامات بالفساد تطال محافظ الديوانية
Original addressوكان مجلس محافظة الديوانية قد عقد في وقت سابق عدة جلسات لاستجواب المحافظ عباس الزاملي، وأحال ملفه إلى مكتب رئيس الوزراء العراقي علي الزيدي، وهيئة النزاهة، وديوان الرقابة المالية الاتحادي