What Did the United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq (UNAMI) Offer Iraq? And How Did It Leave Iraq?!
(Translated)
Al-Rayah Newspaper - Issue 581 - 07/01/2026
By: Ustadh Ahmed Al-Tai – Wilayah Iraq

Following the American occupation of Iraq in 2003, UN Security Council Resolution 1500 was issued on August 14, 2003, establishing the United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq (UNAMI). This was not at the request of Iraq at the time. Its stated purpose was to assist Iraq in transitioning to a new phase of political and economic development and positive engagement with the international community by providing advice, support, and assistance to the Iraqi government in resolving any problems that arose at the local, regional, and international levels. Its first representative was Gio Vera de Mello, who was killed five days after assuming his post in the bombing of the Canal Hotel in Baghdad on August 19, 2003. He was followed by other representatives, most notably Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert, and most recently, Dr. Mohammed Al-Hassan.

After more than two decades of operation, the UN mission was officially dissolved on Saturday, December 13, 2025. This announcement coincided with UN Secretary-General António Guterres' visit to Baghdad, following a formal request submitted on May 21, 2024, by outgoing Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani to the Secretary-General.

So, what did this mission accomplish during its 22 years? Its most significant achievements, as it claims, were its role as mediator and observer, particularly during sensitive transitional periods, such as drafting the constitution, promoting inclusive political dialogue and national reconciliation, organizing elections, and reforming the security sector. The rosy picture painted by the UN mission's representative, Mohammed al-Hassan, in his farewell address, was a far cry from the reality of Iraq. He portrayed Iraq as a paradise, “a success story” and “a unique country”, “Iraq believes they are ready to move to another phase of development of solidifying their own sovereignty and territorial integrity.” “It's a very unique country within a very turbulent Middle East. Let that project succeed. Let them stand with the people and the leadership of Iraq.” Many other such praises worthy of adulation!

Here, we must ask: After more than two decades of its presence, and with all these purported achievements, how did the United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq (UNAMI) leave Iraq?

It left Iraq in its worst state: a country stripped of its sovereignty, burdened with debt, mired in corruption, lacking security and safety, where weapons and criminal gangs reign supreme. This contradiction and falsehood between what it claims, and the reality the country is experiencing is not surprising, because these organizations were not established and have never been in the service of humanity. Instead, they are colonialist organizations that implement the agendas of the occupier, offering poison disguised as honey. The people of Iraq witnessed the malicious actions of the UN envoy, Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert, who worked in Iraq from 2019 to 2024. She managed to surround herself with a large media presence through her appearances on television channels and social media, broadcasting her meetings with Iraqi politicians, from the Prime Minister and Speaker of Parliament, to the President and even leaders of armed factions. She also met with Grand Ayatollah Sistani twice. Despite all this, she witnessed the deterioration of the situation and the country's decline, yet she offered no assistance to alleviate this suffering. The reason, as we mentioned earlier, is that she did not come to solve the country's problems, but rather to exacerbate them, all while collecting the salaries and benefits of approximately 648 employees in her mission.

As for the international repercussions of this decision, China, Russia, Britain, and France supported ending the UN mission. However, the United States expressed reservations, emphasizing the mission’s crucial role in many important political issues, such as supporting the organization of elections and promoting human rights.

According to this American stance, Iraq may witness events in the coming days and face a new scenario:

Either the strengthening of what is termed national sovereignty and support for the political process according to the American vision, demonstrating Iraq’s autonomy and the dominance of American investment, following political understandings, particularly regarding the issue of armed factions—which is what prompted the Sudanese official's satisfaction—or chaos, security breakdown, political score-settling, and Iraq’s descent into an even darker abyss. In short, regarding the suffering of the Iraqi people, this mission entered Iraq in 2003 when it was an occupied country in dire straits, and left it in an even worse state, burdened with political, social, security, and moral problems and crises, along with widespread drug use, rampant poverty, unemployment, proliferation of weapons, pervasive corruption, and theft of funds on a staggering scale, in addition to its external and internal debt... So, what reformative role did this mission play, and was its presence better than its absence?

Therefore, we say: We cannot beg for reform and solutions to our problems from our enemies. Instead, we must take the initiative and remove our own thorns. This can only be achieved by activating our Islamic identity, embracing our civilizational project, and establishing the sovereignty of Allah (swt) by implementing His Shariah Law and adhering to His commands. By doing so, our past glory and lost honor will return to us, and we will be among the strangers about whom the Messenger of Allah (saw) said,

«بَدَأَ الْإِسْلَامُ غَرِيباً ثُمَّ يَعُودُ غَرِيباً كَمَا بَدَأَ، فَطُوبَى لِلْغُرَبَاءِ» “Islam began as something strange, and it will return to being strange as it began. So blessed are the strangers.” It was said,

«يَا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ وَمَنْ الْغُرَبَاءُ؟» “O Messenger of Allah (saw), who are the strangers?” He (saw) said, «الَّذِينَ يُصْلِحُونَ إِذَا فَسَدَ النَّاسُ» “Those who reform when people become corrupt.”

This is the only cure that can uproot disbelief (kufr) and its foundations, end the occupation and its organizations, and sever its political, economic, social, and cultural arms. The disease is clear, the cure is known, and there is no cure other than Islam.