A delegation from the Dáil Foreign Affairs committee is to visit Iraq next week.
The delegation will be headed by the Labour Party's spokesperson on Foreign Affairs, Mr Michael D Higgins, and Senator Michael Kitt of Fianna Fáil. The delegation will depart for Iraq on Wednesday to meet political and non-governmental representatives.
It is also expected to visit Jordan to meet members of the Jordanian parliament's Foreign Affairs Committee to discuss the threat of war in the region.
Mr Higgins said: "We will seek an update on the impact that the economic sanctions are having on the Iraqi people, especially women and children.
"I have visited Iraq twice previously, prior to the Gulf War and also just over a year ago, to assess political and economic conditions there", he said.
Mr Higgins said a war in Iraq would be catastrophic.
