BAGHDAD: Iraq's presidential council has approved a law to combat the smuggling of hydrocarbon and petroleum products.
The law calls for stiff penalties for smugglers ranging from fines worth five times the value of smuggled materials to imprisonment and confiscation of cars and boats used in the process.
It also states that any sabotage of oil plants, pipelines and storage facilities will fall under Iraq's terrorism law.
Thursday's statement by the three-member panel led by President Jalal Talabani says the law will help protect hydrocarbon resources and help end fuel shortages.
Iraq sits on the world's third-largest oil reserves, totaling more than 115 billion barrels. But the industry has faced decades of neglect and lack of investment.