UK-Iraq deportation pact nears final stages amid Kurdish migration spike

Yvette Cooper, the UK Home Secretary, is reportedly in the "final stages" of agreeing a new migration pact with Iraq to accelerate cooperation between London and Baghdad, allowing the UK to deport a higher number of failed asylum seekers, The Daily Mail reported on Monday.

However, the agreement has yet to be officially confirmed by either side.

"More than 21,000 people have already made the perilous journey across the Channel, and Iraqi Kurds now dominate the people-smuggling networks," the website wrote. Ministers are said to be under growing pressure to address the ongoing migrant crisis, with 2025 on track to become a record year for small-boat crossings.

At the end of 2024, Ms Cooper signed an initial agreement with Iraqi officials aimed at disrupting smuggling gangs, boosting intelligence sharing, and expanding joint law enforcement operations.

"We only have some initial details on the matter, but we are following up with certainty and not overlooking it," Mardin Hamid, Head of the Media Department at the Kurdish NGO Summit for Refugees and Displaced Affairs (Lutka), told The New Arab.

"Many European countries have already begun formal agreements to return Iraqi citizens. However, much of the deportation process is conducted secretly, so there are no clear statistics available," Hamid added. 

According to Hamid, at least 15,420 Iraqis over the age of 18 have illegally migrated to Europe so far in 2025, with the majority being young Kurds.

"Unfortunately, due to rising unemployment, a deepening economic crisis, and political uncertainty in the Kurdistan Region, many young Kurds are increasingly turning to illegal migration," she added. "These youths are being misled by human traffickers who falsely claim the journey is safe."

"Illegal migration is not safe at all—especially not by small boats," she warned. "The most dangerous routes currently used are via Turkey and Greece, and more recently, Tunisia and Libya." She noted that at least five individuals have died on these journeys in 2025, with one person still missing.

TNA contacted the UK Home Office, Iraq's Interior Ministry, and officials from the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG), but none were available for comment by the time of publication.

A Kurdish asylum seeker in the UK told TNA that the Labour government's move may be driven by voter pressure from the Reform Party, which is expected to pose a serious challenge in the upcoming elections. However, he noted that the plan could face legal obstacles, as court judges may intervene, potentially delaying any deportation process for a long time.

Locals in the Raparin area told TNA that most of the illegal migration originates from there, where unemployment rates are among the highest in the Iraqi Kurdistan Region.

Recently, Kurdish security forces in Raparin arrested several human traffickers and confiscated the passports of over 70 young people who had planned to migrate to Libya. However, the passports were later returned after the youths protested, claiming they had been promised legal immigration opportunities.

In a separate effort, the UK Home Office launched a digital awareness campaign across Iraq's Kurdistan Region on 4 March 2025. The campaign aims to counter misinformation spread by smuggling networks by warning prospective migrants of the dangers of irregular journeys and false promises of safe passage.

The campaign forms part of the UK government's broader "Plan for Change", which prioritises border security and a crackdown on people smuggling through the new Border Security Command.

As part of these efforts, Martin Hewitt, the UK's Border Security Commander, recently visited Iraq and the Kurdistan Region to strengthen coordination against organised immigration crime. "Global cooperation is key to dismantling these networks," he stated.

Despite these preventative measures, nearly 30 people from Iraqi Kurdistan drowned on 15 June 2024 when a yacht carrying around 80 migrants capsized off the coast of Italy. Among the dead were several women and children, highlighting the devastating risks of irregular migration.