Law Office ofAli Barakat
Applications before the Political Prisoners and Martyrs foundations

The Department of Popular Mobilization Forces martyrs at the Martyrs Foundation

In briefArticle 1 treats as a martyr every Iraqi citizen who died in answer to the call of the homeland and the supreme religious authority from 11/6/2014, provided they fought ISIS and died as a result. The Popular Mobilization Commission and the Martyrs Foundation document the names, in coordination with others, and coverage is decided by the Committee for Reviewing the Applications of Martyrs' Families.

The name “Martyrs Foundation — Department of Popular Mobilization Forces martyrs”. The file of Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF) martyrs proceeds inside the Martyrs Foundation under Foundation Law No. 2 of 2016, as amended, a path separate from that of Compensation Law No. 20 of 2009. The two names may meet in a single incident, but the body and the statute differ until it is decided which law applies.

The general categories of a martyr are in Who is a martyr.

What does the text say?

Paragraph (b) of clause First of Article 1 treats as a martyr every Iraqi citizen who died as a result of answering the call of the homeland and the supreme religious authority, from 11/6/2014. The Popular Mobilization Commission (Hay’at al-Hashd al-Sha‘bi) and the Martyrs Foundation, in coordination with the relevant bodies, the Kurdistan Region and the governorate councils, are charged with documenting the names of the martyrs, including those not registered with the Commission, provided they fought the ISIS terrorist organisation and died as a result, and with submitting their files to the committee in Article 9(1) for coverage with the rights and privileges.

Paragraph (c), added later, addresses Peshmerga and security-agency martyrs who died in areas outside the Kurdistan Region. That neighbouring category is distinguished by the Region’s own procedures.

Paragraph Third of Article 4 applies cases of martyrdom from 11/6/2014 in the manner set out in Article 1(b). The date and the condition are part of the scope of the law, not a general social description.

The department and the reviewing committee

The name “Department of Popular Mobilization Forces martyrs” points to an administrative formation inside the Foundation that follows these files. An administrative formation does not replace the Committee for Reviewing the Applications of Martyrs' Families, which decides coverage under Article 9. The application is filed as explained in A martyr's file, and may be directed through the department or directorate the Foundation indicates in Baghdad or the governorate.

Documentation with the Popular Mobilization Commission helps to prove the facts. The text also covers a person not registered with the Commission if the condition is established and the file is submitted to the committee. The door is not closed merely because a name is absent from a register, and the register alone is not enough if the committee disputes the condition of fighting, or the cause of death.

The families of these martyrs fall within the Article 1 definition, and the rights to salary, land and study apply where the conditions are met, including the share of study places that Article 17 reserves for the families of PMF martyrs, explained in Education privileges.

What should not be confused with this path?

Compensation for the wounded and for martyrdom under Law No. 20 of 2009 proceeds before the sub-committees and the central committees, even though the Department of Martyrs of War Operations, Military Errors and Terrorist Operations at the Foundation is linked to those committees. Military errors and war operations explains who that law covers. A person who may fall under both laws should read the combining rule in Combining entitlements, without a double benefit for the same harm where the text forbids it.

Legal basis and sources

  1. Martyrs Foundation Law No. 2 of 2016 — Articles 1, 4, 9 and 17
  2. First Amendment Law No. 23 of 2024

Frequently asked questions

Is registration with the Popular Mobilization Commission enough for coverage?

Documentation matters, but coverage is a decision of the reviewing committee after the file is submitted, with the condition of fighting ISIS and dying as a result.

What about a person not registered with the Commission?

The text also charges the bodies with documenting their names and submitting their files to the committee, if the condition applies.

Is this compensation under Law No. 20 of 2009?

No. This is the Martyrs Foundation Law path. Law No. 20 is the compensation-committees path, and has its own pages.

Where does the application start?

With the reviewing committee, or with the directorate or department the Foundation indicates, as explained in Where to approach the Martyrs Foundation.

Always check the text in force and its amendments in the official source.

To ask about your matter