A martyr's file: the review committee, the grievance and the Appeals Committee

A martyr's file at the Martyrs Foundation runs through Article 9 of the Martyrs Foundation Law No. 2 of 2016 as amended. The Committee for Reviewing the Applications of Martyrs' Families decides the application within three months. A refused applicant files a grievance with the same committee within sixty days of notification; if the grievance is not decided within ninety days, it is treated as rejected. The next step is an appeal to the Appeals Committee chaired by a judge, and then to the Administrative Judiciary Court.

The full framework is on the page Political Prisoners Foundation and Martyrs Foundation.

The Committee for Reviewing the Applications of Martyrs' Families

Item 1 of Article 9, in the wording the 2024 law substituted for the earlier text, establishes committees in Baghdad and the provinces called the "Committee for Reviewing the Applications of Martyrs' Families" (Lajnat al-Nadhar fi Talabat Dhawi al-Shuhada'). Each is chaired by a legal employee from a martyr's family, with four members.

• Time: the committee examines the application within three months of submission (item 2).
• Voting: decisions are taken by majority, and in a tie the chair's side prevails (item 3).
• Applicable law: the committees apply Civil Procedure Law No. 83 of 1969 and Evidence Law No. 107 of 1979 as amended, and any law relevant to proving martyrdom (item 4).
• Ratification: the committees submit their decisions to the Foundation's head for ratification within thirty days of issue (item 12).

Grievance to the same committee

Item 5 gives a refused applicant the right to file a grievance against the committee's decision with the same committee within sixty days at most from notification of the decision. This differs from the Political Prisoners Foundation, where the grievance goes directly to the Appeals Body within thirty days.

Item 6, as amended in 2024, provides that if the review committee does not decide the grievance within ninety days of its submission, the grievance is treated as rejected and an appeal to the Appeals Committee may follow.

The Appeals Committee

Item 7 forms an Appeals Committee chaired by a judge whom the Supreme Judicial Council nominates, with four Foundation employees holding a first university degree as members. Its task is to examine appeals from those whose applications the review committees refused.

The Administrative Judiciary Court

Item 8, in the wording the 2024 law substituted for the earlier text: anyone whose application the Appeals Committee refuses may challenge its decision before the Administrative Judiciary Court according to law. The text does not set a special period for this challenge, so the general rules for challenges before the Administrative Judiciary Court apply.

Time limits in a table

Reconsidering decisions

Item 9 empowers the review committee to reconsider its own decisions, decisions of earlier committees under this law or the repealed Martyrs Foundation Law No. 3 of 2006, and court decisions, at the request of any person with an interest once the Foundation's head approves, where facts and supporting documents show that the decision breached the law. Item 10 allows any person with an interest to request reconsideration of decisions issued under Law No. 3 of 2006 if they breach the law now in force.

Forged documents

Item 11 provides that rights and entitlements are withdrawn and returned to the Foundation's budget from anyone who submitted forged documents or used unlawful means to prove martyrdom or membership of a martyr's family.

Legal basis and sources

1. Martyrs Foundation Law No. 2 of 2016, Article 9
2. First Amendment to the Martyrs Foundation Law, Law No. 23 of 2024, Article 7
3. Martyrs Foundation, official website

Frequently asked questions

Related topics and articles

• 01Who is a martyr, and who are the martyr's family, under the Martyrs Foundation LawWho is a martyr's family in Iraqi law: parents, children, spouses, siblings and grandchildren, and the three martyr categories in Law No. 2 of 2016.
• 02Combining entitlements from the Political Prisoners and Martyrs Foundations with other salariesCombining two salaries for martyrs' families and political prisoners in Iraq: combining periods, Law No. 20 of 2009, and the bar on double benefit.
• 03Challenging a non-coverage decision under the Political Prisoners Foundation LawPolitical Prisoners Foundation Appeals Body: grievance within 30 days, the administrative court within 30 days, and the 2025 Reconsideration Committee.
• 04Who is covered by the Political Prisoners Foundation Law?Who is a political prisoner, detainee or Rafha detainee under Iraq's Law No. 4 of 2006: covered periods, family members and exclusions.
• 05Proving political imprisonment or detention before the Special CommitteeHow political imprisonment or detention is proved before the Special Committee: written evidence first, then testimony with supporting indications.

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

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