Attorney General Al-Siddiq Al-Sour confirmed that legal measures will be taken against those implicated in the controversial importation of cancer medication from Iraq. This announcement came during a meeting with Acting Health Minister of the Government of National Unity, Mohammed Al-Ghuj, according to a statement posted on the ministry’s official Facebook page.
The statement said the meeting, held at the Attorney General’s office, discussed key health-related issues, including recent developments in drug regulation, public procurement, anti-corruption efforts, and ways to enhance the ministry’s performance. Particular focus was given to the violations associated with the import of Iraqi-made cancer drugs.
Al-Sour reaffirmed the Public Prosecution’s commitment to take legal action against anyone proven to be involved in irregularities tied to this case. He emphasized that criminal proceedings would be initiated against all individuals who break laws or regulations, or who jeopardize public health or misuse the state’s medical resources.
For his part, Al-Ghuj expressed his full cooperation with the Attorney General’s office and all oversight bodies, affirming his readiness to work toward reforming the health sector and ensuring better services for citizens. The cancer drug scandal surfaced last week after Iraq’s Ministry of Health announced it had delivered the first locally produced shipment of cancer drugs to Libya.
However, Libya’s National Anti-Cancer Authority denied receiving any shipments from Iraq or any other Arab or Asian country. The Ministry of Health responded by saying the shipment had been imported outside the framework of the general tender process, upon direct request from cancer treatment centers and with approval from the Administrative Control Authority, following a lengthy process with strict oversight.
In response to the controversy, Prime Minister Abdulhamid Dbeibah dismissed Ramadan Abu Janah from his post as Acting Health Minister and referred him, along with several other ministry officials, for investigation over irregularities in the drug import process—specifically, bypassing the National Anti-Cancer Authority.
