People & Institutions

Nechirvan Barzani

نيشيرفان بارزاني

This page sets out what the documents in this archive record about this person: the legal status on the date shown, the cases, the official registers and the sources.

Legal status as of 20 October 2026

Accused in credible reporting

Accused by credible media or a published report; no official action known.

What the documents say

OCCRP reported in June 2022 that an expenses spreadsheet among leaked Japan Tobacco documents showed two of Nizar Hanna Nasri's companies paying his personal expenses in 2004 and 2005, including mobile phone bills, costs of a car in the United Arab Emirates and what appear to be cash payments of up to USD 25,000, and that Kani Commercial Company monopolized cigarette imports into the Region with his support. His lawyer rejected any allegation or suggestion of wrongdoing. No official action known as of 19 October 2026.

Kind: Person
Roles: President of the Kurdistan Region since 2019; earlier Prime Minister of the Kurdistan Region

Cases

These are the cases in this archive that name this entry, with the status in each case on the date shown.

Cases
Case	Role	Status in this case	Detail	As of
Iraq's cigarette trade: OCCRP investigation into Nizar Hanna Nasri, Waheb Tabra and the Kani import monopoly in the Kurdistan Region (2003 to 2022)	President of the Kurdistan Region since 2019; earlier Prime Minister of the Kurdistan Region	Accused in credible reporting	OCCRP reported in June 2022 that an expenses spreadsheet among leaked Japan Tobacco documents showed two of Nizar Hanna Nasri's companies paying his personal expenses in 2004 and 2005, including mobile phone bills, costs of a car in the United Arab Emirates and what appear to be cash payments of up to USD 25,000, and that Kani Commercial Company monopolized cigarette imports into the Region with his support. His lawyer rejected any allegation or suggestion of wrongdoing. No official action known as of 19 October 2026.	19 October 2026

Documents

These are the documents behind this entry. Each quote is given in the language of the document.

OCCRP29 June 2022Press reportTier D
Smoke and Mirrors: How the “Father” of Iraq’s Cigarette Smugglers Built An Empire
One expenses spreadsheet filed by Japan Tobacco informants showed that two of Nasri’s companies, European Tobacco and Nasri Group, paid personal expenses for Nechirvan in 2004 and 2005.
Case: Iraq's cigarette trade: OCCRP investigation into Nizar Hanna Nasri, Waheb Tabra and the Kani import monopoly in the Kurdistan Region (2003 to 2022)
Original address
Daraj (with OCCRP)29 June 2022Press reportTier D
شراكاته امتدت من عدي صدام حسين إلى نيشيرفان بارزاني: كيف بنى "أبو" مهربي السجائر في العراق نزار نصري إمبراطوريته؟
يتربع رجل الأعمال العراقي نزار حنا نصري على عرش إمبراطورية تشمل الأدوية وواردات الخمور وبعض المنشآت العقارية الأكثر إثارة في أربيل
Case: Iraq's cigarette trade: OCCRP investigation into Nizar Hanna Nasri, Waheb Tabra and the Kani import monopoly in the Kurdistan Region (2003 to 2022)
Original address

Articles

These press articles mention this name and are listed with the newest first. They are given for journalists and researchers. An article is a report, not a finding. (3 articles)

28 January 2018
رئيس لجنة الطاقة في السليمانية : سرقة واردات نفط الإقليم اكبر عقبة امام اتفاق بغداد واربيلAl-Sabah Al-Jadeed
13 July 2009
بارزاني يعلن الاستعانة بشركة اميركية متخصصة في مجال تحديد اوجه الفسادAlsumaria
7 October 2007
حكومة كردستان العراق تدافع عن صفقات النفط والغازAl Jazeera Net