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BAGDAD, Oct. 24 (Xinhua) -- Iraq's parliament passed a law late Saturday night forbidding the import,production or selling of alcoholic beverages, a move that angered many Christians in the business, Associated Press reported.
Anyone violating the ban will be punished by a fine of up to 25 million Iraqi dinars, or 21,000 U.S. dollars, the law stipulates.
The law met strong protests from the Christian community in the country for it would affect Christians and other minorities who drink alcohol and could shutter hundreds of liquor stores in the country mostly run by Christians.
"If you check crimes committed in Iraq, you would find that most of them were committed because of drugs and liqur, so we are trying to stop this as much as we can," Monadhel as-Mosawi, a Shiite parliamentarian, was quoted as saying by the Wall Street Journal.
"Not only Christians drink liquor - Many muslims do it. This is evidence that the law does not target Christians or others," he said.
But opposition lawmakers said the law was unconstitutional as it violated personal freedom guaranteed by the constitution.
"This ban is unconstitutional, as the constitution acknowledges the rights of non-Muslim minorities and ethnic groups who live alongside Muslims in Iraq," Joseph Slaiwa, a Christian lawmaker, was quoted as saying by the AP.
The law comes as Iraq is waging a massive military offensive to retake the northern city of Mosul from the Islamic State group.
