Yemen Monitor / Reuters:
Iraq’s state news agency (INA) reported on Thursday that authorities in Baghdad intend to amend the list of entities subject to asset freezes, after the most recent issue of the Ministry of Justice’s official gazette mistakenly included Lebanon’s Hezbollah and Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthis.
The gazette had published last month a list of organizations and individuals whose assets were to be frozen—an announcement that appeared at the time likely to be welcomed by the US and increase pressure on Tehran.
Iraq’s Committee for Freezing Terrorists’ Assets clarified that the notice, issued on November 17, was in response to a request from Malaysia and in implementation of UN Security Council Resolution 1373. It stressed that the decision applies solely to individuals and entities linked to ISIS and al-Qaeda. The committee said the inclusion of other groups occurred due to an administrative error because the list was published before final verification was complete, adding that a corrected version would soon be issued in the official gazette.
Neither Hezbollah nor the Houthis have commented on the listing.
The Iraqi government announced it had ordered an urgent investigation to identify those responsible for the error, insisting in its statement that Baghdad’s political and humanitarian positions regarding the suffering of civilians in Lebanon and Palestine are “firm and not open to bargaining.”
The US has for years sought to curb Iran’s influence in Iraq and elsewhere in the region, particularly as the so-called Axis of Resistance has faced significant setbacks since the escalation of the Gaza conflict in 2023.
Iran considers Iraq an important economic partner in confronting U.S. sanctions, while Baghdad finds itself caught between U.S. pressure and its strategic ties with Tehran, which maintains significant political and military influence through allied factions and parties.
