KRG Dismisses Abdul Latif Salafi From University of Sulaymaniyah Over Audio Recording Case

Peregraf — The Kurdistan Regional Government’s Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research has dismissed Abdul Latif Ahmed Mustafa, widely known as Abdul Latif Salafi, from his position at the University of Sulaymaniyah following the conclusion of an official investigation into controversial audio recordings allegedly involving a female student.

In a ministerial order issued Wednesday, Higher Education Minister Aram Mohammad Qadir ordered Salafi’s permanent dismissal from his post as a faculty member at the College of Islamic Sciences.

The ministry said the decision was based on the findings and recommendations of the investigation committee established by the University of Sulaymaniyah, which conducted its work under the supervision of a representative of the Public Prosecution. The dismissal was issued under Article 4 and Paragraphs 8 and 9 of the Kurdistan Region’s State and Public Sector Employees Discipline Law No. 14 of 1991, as amended.

The case began on June 18, when the University of Sulaymaniyah formed a high-level investigation committee after audio recordings circulated on social media allegedly capturing conversations between Salafi and a female student. The recordings sparked widespread public debate across the Kurdistan Region.

At the time, the university said the investigation would be conducted under the supervision of the Public Prosecution and pledged to publish the outcome transparently upon its completion.

Salafi denied that the voice in the recordings was his, describing the audio as fabricated, while the individual who released the recordings insisted they were authentic.

The controversy was not the first involving the prominent Salafi preacher. In 2016, the Kurdistan Region’s Ministry of Higher Education temporarily suspended him from teaching at the Institute of Islamic Sciences after similar audio recordings allegedly involving conversations with a female student surfaced.

The dismissal marks the first formal disciplinary action taken against Salafi following the completion of the official investigation into the latest allegations.