The International Criminal Investigative Training Assistance Program (ICITAP) led an advance team—following the major combat operations in Iraq—to assess the condition of local law enforcement institutions. Under the Coalition Provisional Authority in Iraq, ICITAP assisted in establishing the Ministry of Interior, the Ministry of Justice, and the Department of Border Enforcement. Senior managers from ICITAP also helped start up the Jordan International Police Training Center (JIPTC) for basic training of Iraqi police. In coordination with Coalition partners, ICITAP has deployed hundreds of professional trainers to Jordan and Iraq to support the training of thousands of Iraqi law enforcement personnel.

Funded by the Iraq Relief and Reconstruction Fund—and administered by the State Department's Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs—ICITAP's work in Iraq is building the capacity of the government's civilian institutions and helping to establish the rule of law in the country. ICITAP was initially deployed to Iraq in 2003 to help prepare for the U.S. reconstruction mission. ICITAP conducted assessments that laid the groundwork for U.S. law enforcement development programs in Iraq.

Corrections

Following the assessment conducted in 2003, ICITAP helped reestablish the Iraq Corrections Service (ICS) under the Coalition Provisional Authority. ICITAP then worked with Iraqi leaders to develop a national prison system that five years later operated 38 prisons; housed 19,000 inmates; and employed, trained, and equipped more than 12,000 staff. ICITAP deployed a team of 80 corrections training officers to provide on-site training and mentoring to Iraqi staff at prison facilities throughout the country and to assist the Iraq Ministry of Justice in strengthening the overall management of the corrections service. The ICITAP program helps ensure that the ICS functions as a safe and secure correctional system that follows internationally recognized standards for the treatment of prisoners.

Anticorruption investigations

ICITAP established a training and mentoring program to develop the investigative capabilities of the Commission on Public Integrity—an independent, autonomous division of the Iraqi government that focuses on preventing government corruption, and promoting transparency and the rule of law in Iraq.

Police services

ICITAP deployed an assessment team in May 2003 to advise the Coalition Provisional Authority on the state of the Iraqi police and provided recommendations on institutional reform, training, and policy implementation. Within the first three months, ICITAP reconstituted the Iraq police service in Baghdad and established the Iraq Department of Border Enforcement. ICITAP also worked with the U.S. military to stand up the Civilian Police Assistance and Training Team (CPATT), and for four years an ICITAP employee served as the senior executive police advisor to the CPATT commanding general and provided support to all lines of CPATT operations. At its height, the ICITAP police training program in Iraq was supported by 285 ICITAP police trainers-advisors. Through CPATT, ICITAP trained more than 260,000 Iraqi police officers. ICITAP helped to establish the Baghdad Police College and 11 regional police training centers, and trained and mentored the entire Iraqi police instructor corps.