US ambassador faces threats by Kata'ib Hezbollah over critical comments on Iraq's Personal Status Law

The United States Ambassador to Iraq, Alina L. Romanowski, found herself at the centre of a political storm following critical comments she made on attempts by the Iraqi parliament to amend the country's Personal Status Law. 

The proposed changes to law No. 188 of 1959, sparked fierce public debate, with significant concerns raised over their potential impact on women's rights in the country.

On 4 August, the Iraqi Parliament held the first reading of a bill aimed at revising the Personal Status Law. Critics fear the amendments could enhance the power of religious authorities over civil courts, potentially leading to the legalisation of female child marriages and a rollback of fundamental women’s rights.

The proposed changes have ignited protests from civil society organisations across Iraq, while Iran-backed Shia blocs, which hold a majority in the legislature, vowed to push the bill through to law.

In a recent post on X, formerly known as Twitter, Ambassador Romanowski shared a translation of a statement from Vedant Patel, Principal Deputy Spokesperson of the US State Department, expressing concern over the proposed amendments. "We are concerned about proposed amendments to the Iraqi Personal Status Law that could undermine the rights of women and children. We urge Iraqis to engage in a civic dialogue in full respect of both freedom of religion or belief and the rights of women and children," the post read.

However, this intervention led to severe backlash from lawmakers within Iraq's ruling Coordination Framework, an alliance of pro-Iran Shia blocs in parliament.

 Hassan Salim, a lawmaker from the Sadiqun bloc representing Baghdad province, took to the X platform to rebuke the US ambassador, urging her to remain silent and asserting that the law is an internal Iraqi matter. Salim further accused Romanowski of turning a blind eye to the atrocities in Gaza, where he claims children and women are being killed.

The situation escalated further when Abu Ali al-Askari, a senior security official of Kata'ib Hezbollah, issued a direct threat to the ambassador.

 "If the Iraqi government does not discipline the American ambassador of evil in Baghdad, we will discipline her in other ways," al-Askari declared on X late on Wednesday. He went on to accuse the US and the UK of being complicit in what he described as "the war of genocide carried out by the Zionist entity against the Palestinian people." 

Israel's war on Gaza has killed at least 40,223 people directly and wounded a further 92,981 since October, according to figures from Gaza's health ministry.

Al-Askari also criticised the British Ambassador to Iraq, Stephen Hickey, stating that he remains "unwelcomed in Baghdad." Moreover, he hinted at the possibility of Kata'ib Hezbollah resuming military attacks on US forces in Iraq, suggesting that their current halt in operations is "subject to specific balances at this stage."

Amid the political tensions, prominent women's rights advocate Amal Kabashi expressed grave concerns over the proposed amendments. Speaking to The New Arab, Kabashi recently warned that the changes could undermine the principle of equality enshrined in Article 14 of Iraq's constitution, potentially leading to a judicial system fraught with sectarianism and compromising both societal and familial unity.

Kabashi also highlighted the risk that these amendments could erode protections for women in cases of forced divorce, custody disputes, and other personal status matters currently safeguarded under existing legislation. 

Particularly alarming, she noted, is the possibility that Shia and Sunni clerics could be allowed to finalise marriage contracts outside the traditional court system, raising serious ethical and legal questions about the permissible age for girls to marry.

"If these amendments pass," Kabashi warned, "they would not only allow but potentially normalise child marriages, even as young as nine years old. Moreover, they could legally sanction various forms of marriage currently unrecognised by Iraqi law, such as pleasure and 'misyar marriages'."

The controversy continues to unfold as Iraq grapples with the potential implications of these legal changes, both domestically and on the international stage.