Iraq’s Parliament on Saturday voted to ban the sale, import and production of alcohol, in a surprise move likely to anger some minorities but also to please influential religious parties. Proponents of the ban argue that it is justified by the Constitution, which prohibits any law contradicting Islam. Last-minute additionAccording to an MP and a Parliament official, the ban was a last-minute addition to a draft law on municipalities that caught the anti-ban camp flat-footed. The law was also passed by MPs in Baghdad as all eyes were on the Mosul operation. “A law was passed today and article 14 of that law bans the import, production and sale of all kinds of alcohol,” said Yonadam Kanna, a veteran Christian MP.

Source: The Hindu October 23, 2016 18:56 UTC