ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Five women were sentenced to six years in prison for trafficking an infant, the Supreme Judicial Council (SJC) said on Tuesday, amid increased crackdowns on child trafficking networks in the country.
"The Karkh Criminal Court has issued a six-year prison sentence against five women convicted of the crime of human trafficking," the SJC posted on Facebook, noting that "the convicted mother sold her newborn baby in complicity with four other women in exchange for three million Iraqi dinars ($2,200)."
This comes as Iraqi authorities have increased efforts through the Directorate for Combating Human Trafficking, operating under the Interior Ministry, to pursue child trafficking networks.
The Interior Ministry announced in late June that authorities had rescued 94 trafficking victims, dismantled 48 trafficking rings, and arrested 1,012 suspects.
From the beginning of 2026 to date, the ministry documented 1,344 human trafficking cases and uncovered domestic and transnational trafficking networks operating through digital platforms.
The Iraqi Observatory for Human Rights (IOHR), an independent non-profit that monitors human rights violations in Iraq, warned in mid-June that gaps in victim identification and legal protections continue to undermine anti-trafficking efforts.
The Baghdad-based monitor reported that 385 trafficking victims were identified in Iraq in 2025, including 26 children who were sold.
This figure contrasted sharply with the 5,107 people detained on trafficking-related charges, said the monitor, arguing that the disparity points to "a structural failure" in identifying and protecting victims.
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