THE GOVERNMENT HAS approved plans by the Iraqi Government to establish an embassy in Ireland.

The plan, which would see a resident embassy established by the Republic of Iraq in Dublin, was approved by Cabinet earlier today.

The Iraqi Government wishes to set up the embassy to develop bilateral relations with Ireland as well as provide consular assistance to any Iraqi citizens living in Ireland.

Currently, Ireland does not have an embassy in Iraq, with any citizen seeking consular assistance in the country asked to instead contact the Irish embassy in Jordan.

Initially, it is expected that the Iraqi embassy would be run by a chargé d’affaires, which is a deputy ambassador.

The memorandum was brought to Cabinet by Foreign Affairs Minister Simon Coveney, who has also raised concerns with both the Iranian Foreign Minister and Iranian ambassador to Ireland over the death of Mahsa Amini.

It’s understood that Coveney held a long phone call with Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian and raised his concerns over the death of Mahsa Amini.

It comes as Iran has continued to crackdown on protests in Kurdish areas of the country over the death of the 22-year-old.

Riot police fired into at least one neighbourhood in Sanandaj, the capital of Iran’s Kurdistan province, while condemnation has come from both Amnesty International and the US Government.

It comes as Fianna Fáil senators brought a motion to the Seanad on the death of Mahsa Amini yesterday evening, which the Government supported.