Legal system for construction on agricultural lands (An analytical study of the Iraqi legal system)

The research examined the legal system for construction on agricultural land in Iraq, as one of the topics that touches on balancing two rights that may sometimes conflict: the citizen's right to adequate housing, on the one hand, and the protection of the local economy by preserving agricultural land, on the other. Urban expansion, due to rapid population growth, has led to an increase in the phenomenon of construction on agricultural land, whether legally or illegally, often without taking into account the balance between the requirements of preserving the cultivated area. The research required an analysis of the legal texts regulating this type of construction to uncover shortcomings, ambiguities, or contradictions. In other words, to demonstrate their adequacy in providing protection for agricultural land in light of increasing urban expansion at the expense of agricultural land. Furthermore, the research raised fundamental questions about the decisions of the dissolved Revolutionary Command Council regulating this issue. They asked whether they constitute a sufficient guarantee to achieve a balance between protecting agricultural land and providing the right to adequate housing for farmers cultivating it, and whether they took into account the negative effects of changing the use of agricultural land on the local economy.