now on bbc news, in part one of undercover with the clerics, bbc arabic‘s nawal al maghafi investigatesion of vulnerable girls and young women, tricked into so—called ‘pleasure marriages‘ in iraq. a warning that you may find some of the content and language in this programme upsetting. muslim clerics acting like pimps. undercover in baghdad, we expose a secret world of sexual exploitation. widows of war forced to become prostitutes. men of god giving religious guidance on how to abuse children. in this holy sex trade, even children are for sale. the office ayatollah sistani, one of one of the most senior clerics of shia islam, tells us these are crimes that should be punished. millions visit this holy shrine, and many couples come here to get married. just walking around a shopping walking around a shopp arcade and we are close to the main. in this society where sex for unmarried couples is for that end, a pleasure marriage allows a man to pay for a temporary wife but they are illegal in iraq, and we have found they are used to exploit women. i have to be discreet filming this but we ar

first, bbc arabic‘s nawal al maghafi investigates shia clerics at some of iraq's holiest shrines.ncovers the exploitation of vulnerable girls and young women, tricked into so called ‘pleasure marriages‘. the film contains scenes which some viewers may find upsetting. muslim clerics acting like pens. we expose a secret world of sexual exploitation. widows of war forced to become prostitutes. men of god giving religious guidance on how to abuse children. in this holy sex trade, even children are for sale. the office of one of the most senior clerics of islam tells us these are crimes that should be punished. iam in i am in central baghdad, one of the most important pilgrimage sites for shia islam. millions fell to this holy shrine and couples come here get married. walking around across from the main shrine i have come across multiple marriage offices. we have heard that some shieh clerics are performing a controversial religious practise. in this society where sex for unmarried couples is for that end, a pleasure marriage allows a man to pay for a temporary wife but they are illega

. —— nawal al—maghafi exposes.ing. —— bbc arabic. muslim clerics acting like pimps. undercover in baghdad, we expose a secret world of sexual exploitation. widows of war forced to become halal prostitutes. men of god giving religious guidance on how to abuse children. in this holy sex trade, even children are for sale. the office of ayatollah sistani, one of the most senior clerics in shia islam tells us these are crimes that should be punished. in iraq today, conservative shia clerics have huge influence. after years of sectarian conflict, they've gained political leverage often with the backing of armed militias. activists say they are pushing women's rights back decades. we spoke to a campaigner who runs a network of women's shelters across iraq. there were laws that protected women, some protection for us in our marriages. it seems that all the things that we gained in decades of hard work of the generation of our mothers were just lost. once the islamic clerics rule, the first loser is the women. to try to und

you may find some parts of this report by nawal al maghafi distressing.st shrine in shia islam. visited by millions of pilgrims every year. in the streets around the shrine are marriage offices, where couples come to get wed. but they hold one of iraq's darkest secrets. we had heard some clerics were abusing their power, using temporary marriages to facilitate prostitution with young girls. it is a marriage contract with an expiry date which can be as short as an hour. some say they can be a positive move for couples who are aware of what they are doing. but they are also ripe for exploitation. in a year—long investigation, we went undercover around some of iraq's holiest shrines. these temporary marriages are illegal in iraq. however, we found clerics willing to do them. not only facilitating them with young girls, but also offering justification through their interpretation of islamic law to have sex with them. we showed our footage to this expert in islamic law, a former high—ranking cleric himself. translation: what this man is saying is a crime. that

you may find some parts of this report by nawal al maghafi distressing.hrine in shia islam, visited by millions of pilgrims every year. in the streets around the shrine are marriage offices where couples come to get wed. but they hold one of iraq's darkest secrets. we had heard some clerics were abusing their power, using temporary marriages, or mutah, to facilitate prostitution with young girls. it is a marriage contract with an expiry date, which can be as short as an hour. some say they can be a positive move for couples who are aware of what they are doing. but they are also ripe for exploitation. in a year—long investigation, we went undercover around some of iraq's holiest shrines. these temporary marriages are illegal in iraq. however, we found clerics willing to do them, not only facilitating them with young girls, but also offering justification through their interpretation of islamic law to have sex with them. we showed our footage to an expert in islamic law, ghaith al tamimi, a former high—ranking cleric himself. translation: what this man is

this special report from nawal al—maghafi contains details of child abuse that you may find distressinglions of pilgrims every year. in the streets around the shrine are marriage offices, where couples come to get wed. but they hold one of iraq's darkest secrets. we had heard some clerics were abusing their power, using temporary marriages to facilitate prostitution with young girls. it is a marriage contract with an expiry date which can be as short as an hour. some say they can be a positive move for couples who are aware of what they are doing. but they are also ripe for exploitation. in a year—long investigation, we went undercover around some of iraq's holiest shrines. these temporary marriages are illegal in iraq. however, we found clerics willing to do them. not only facilitating them with young girls, but also offering justification through their interpretation of islamic law to have sex with them. we showed our footage to this expert in islamic law, a former high—ranking cleric himself. translation: what this man is saying is a crime. that must be punished by law. he says it is

in a moment we'll speak to special correspondent nawal al—maghafi about her shocking investigation. important warning — this film contains details of child sexual abuse which you may find distressing. you may want children to leave the room for the next ten minutes or so. karbala, the holiest shrine in shia islam, visited by millions of pilgrims every year. in the streets around the shrine, are marriage offices where couples come to get wed but they hold one of iraq's darkest secrets. we had heard some clerics were abusing their power, using temporary marriages, or mutah, to facilitate prostitution with young girls. it's a marriage contract with an expiry date, which can be as short as an hour. some say they can be a positive move for couples, who are aware of what they're doing, but they're also ripe for exploitation. in a year—long investigation, we went undercover around some of iraq's holiest shrines. these temporary marriages are illegal in iraq. however, we found clerics willing to do them, not only facilitating them with young girls but also offering justification through the