Lawmakers on Saturday voted in favor of the 1988 an amendment to the anti-prostitution law, according to which homosexuality is punishable by 10 to 15 years in prison. In addition, promoting prostitution and same-sex relationships “in any way” is prohibited in Iraq, punishable by at least seven years in prison.
Alsumaria News, an independent Iraqi news portal, reported that the initial draft of the bill proposed the death penalty for same-sex relationships.
The acting head of the country’s parliament, Mohsen al-Mandalawis, defended the changes to the law.
“This is a fundamental step to protect the value structure of society and the highest level of interest to protect our children from the promotion of moral depravity and homosexuality,” the press release quoted the parliament speaker as saying.
The adopted law caused outrage in the international space.
“Today (Saturday) absolutely terrible changes in the laws took place in Iraq, because they establish discrimination against the LGBT community,” said Raz Salayi, an Iraqi researcher at the human rights organization “Amnesty International”.
Baghdad’s ally, the United States, said it was “deeply concerned” by the Iraqi move.
“This amendment threatens the most vulnerable in Iraqi society and weakens Iraq’s ability to diversify its economy and attract foreign investment,” US State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said on the X social network.
Before the changes to the law, homosexuality was not clearly criminalized in Iraq.
