Shafaq News- Baghdad
Iraq's Council of Representativeshas failed to advance the third amendment to Law No. 20 of 2009, the Law onCompensation of Victims of War Operations, Military Mistakes, and TerroristOperations, leaving thousands of eligible families without full legalrecognition.
The Coordination Committee ofMartyrs' Families has issued a 30-day ultimatum to parliament, warning of civilprotests and demonstrations if the legislative process is not completed withinthe deadline.
Roots of the Crisis
The dispute traces to mid-2023, whensome individuals were removed from the beneficiary registry of the MartyrsFoundation —the Iraqi state institution responsible for formally recognizingand administering benefits for security personnel and civilians killed inmilitary operations, terrorist attacks, or military errors, a status the Iraqistate designates as martyrdom and which carries legally defined pension andcompensation entitlements under Law No. 20 of 2009— without legaljustification, according to Abu Ishaq, spokesman for the Coordination Committeeof Martyrs' Families.
Those removed were members of Iraq'ssecurity forces across various formations who died in active service, Abu Ishaqsaid. Their removal from the foundation's database left their families withoutthe formal state recognition that triggers pension payments and otherentitlements under the law.
"Our demands began gradually,then became a formal legislative amendment aimed at reinstating the removedindividuals and securing their rights," he told Shafaq News.
A Stalled Legislative Path
The third amendment to Law No. 20 of2009 —a law that has been amended twice previously, in 2016 and 2020, andapplies retroactively to events from March 20, 2003, the date of the US-ledinvasion that toppled Saddam Hussein's government— reached its first reading inIraq's Council of Representatives during the fifth legislative term. It wasdeferred when elections for the sixth term intervened.
A temporary committee wassubsequently formed to follow up on the amendment, but it was unable tocomplete its work due to internal disagreements and an expanding agenda. Thepermanent Committee on Martyrs, Victims and Political Prisoners, established afterthe new term began, has since been unable to convene officially because itlacks a quorum— six members are present against the seven required under theinternal regulations of the Council of Representatives, Iraq's 329-seat federallegislature.
The Financial Objection
Parliamentary calls to return theamendment to the government because it carries a financial burden have drawnsharp rejection from families and from official documentation. Sahar al-Shawi,a teacher and mother of a martyr from the Ministry of Interior, told ShafaqNews the amendment imposes no new financial obligations. Its core provisionsare limited to extending salary payments, an arrangement already in place undera prior government decision, and reinstating the removed individuals to theMartyrs Foundation database, which she described as an administrative measure,not a budgetary one.
A formal letter from the MartyrsFoundation, dated May 25, 2025, and reviewed by Shafaq News, confirms thatreinstating the removed individuals carries no financial cost and can beexecuted administratively upon passage of the amendment. The implementinginstructions of Law No. 20 of 2009, issued in 2018 by the Ministry of Finance,establish that the administrative machinery for processing such cases alreadyexists within state institutions, further undermining the financial objectionraised by some lawmakers.
"Those who were removed arealready receiving salaries from their respective ministries," al-Shawisaid. "Returning them to the law gives them moral rights, not financialones." She challenged the objection directly: "If there is afinancial burden, why has the government continued paying salaries to martyrs'families until now?"
Human Cost of the Delay
The prolonged stall has had directconsequences for families who hold official martyrdom rulings but have receivedno monthly salary due to procedural complications. "There are familiesdeprived of salaries despite holding all legal entitlements," al-Shawisaid, adding that temporary measures such as salary extensions address thesymptom without resolving the underlying legal problem.
Abbas al-Fartusi, a relative of amartyr, called on Iraq's political blocs to fulfill what he described as anational responsibility by nominating members to complete the committee'squorum. "Blocking the committee means blocking one of the most importanthumanitarian laws before parliament," he told Shafaq News, warning thatfailure to pass the law would carry serious consequences for martyrs' familiesacross Iraq.
Parliamentary Positions
Broad consensus exists withinparliament for passing the law, according to MP Nazik Ahmed, who noted thatlawmakers had gathered signatures at the start of the current term to form theCommittee on Martyrs, Victims and Political Prisoners, though the effort hadnot yet produced results. "We will work to convey the demands of martyrs'families to the parliamentary presidency and accelerate the procedures,"she said.
Support for the amendment is notlimited to Arab Iraqi blocs. MP Sarwa Mohammed confirmed that Kurdistan Regionpolitical blocs —representing Iraq's Kurdish component, which holds aconstitutionally recognized autonomous region in the north of the country—would back any legislation serving martyrs' families. "The martyrssacrificed for Iraq, and everyone must support the rights of theirfamilies," she said.
In a video recording posted on hisFacebook page, MP Hussein al-Battat, a member of the Committee on Martyrs,Victims and Political Prisoners, said the law may need to be resubmitted to thegovernment for its opinion following certain procedural amendments. Henonetheless confirmed the law commands significant attention within thecommittee and is among the carried-over legislation that must be resolved inthe current term.
Ultimatum
The Coordination Committee ofMartyrs' Families attributed the prolonged delay to an absence of politicalwill, describing the stall as unjustified given the humanitarian nature of thefile. Its statement said the delay reflects the absence of political will toaddress a file of acute humanitarian sensitivity.
The committee's 30-day deadline runsfrom the date the statement was issued. Should parliament fail to act withinthat window, the committee has stated it will escalate to organized civildemonstrations.