Iraq: Parents try to sell son for $7,000

Abu Dhabi: An Iraqi couple was arrested after they attempted to sell their 5-year-son for $7,000 (Dh26,000), Iraq’s Interior Ministry said.

“Intelligence information revealed a human trafficking operation through the sale of a child by his parents. And immediately a technical team was formed from the Organised Crime Intelligence Directorate,” the ministry said in a statement.

The statement added: “After the intensification of the intelligence effort, the couple was arrested in the Karrada district, downtown Baghdad, while selling their 5-year-old son for 10 million dinars (approximately $7,000). The parents were remanded in police custody taking legal measures against them.”

The issue sparked discontent on social media across Iraq, after the Ministry of Interior published the story on its official Twitter account.