Iraq dismisses officials after Hezbollah, Ansar Allah listing error

The Iraqi government has issued administrative penalties after an official publication mistakenly listed Lebanon’s Hezbollah and Yemen’s Ansar Allah as “terrorist organizations”.

The move, which appeared in a government gazette last month, triggered swift political backlash.

The decision follows earlier denials from the Iraqi Presidency, which on December 5 said it had no prior knowledge of, or involvement in, the designation, stressing that such measures fall outside its constitutional authority and are not submitted to it for approval.

The Presidency added that it learned of the listing through social media, mirroring a statement from Prime Minister Mohammed Shia’ al-Sudani’s office that acknowledged that the wording of the asset-freeze decision misrepresented Iraq’s official position and ordered an urgent probe to identify those responsible.

The Prime Minister’s office clarified that Iraq’s consent to freeze assets, based on a request from Malaysia, was strictly limited to individuals and entities linked to ISIS and al-Qaeda.

Concerned officials removed
Prime Minister Mohammad Shia’ al-Sudani chaired the 50th regular session of the Council of Ministers on Tuesday, during which the matter was formally addressed.

The session reviewed the country’s overall situation and adopted a number of decisions, including approval of recommendations from an investigative committee formed to examine the issue.

“The recommendations included administrative penalties, comprising the removal of a number of concerned officials and the reassignment of others,” a government statement confirmed.

The listing appeared in Al-Waqai’ Al-Iraqiyya (the Official Gazette of Iraq), Issue No. 4848, dated November 17, 2025. It included Hezbollah and Ansar Allah under measures related to United Nations Security Council counterterrorism resolutions, which Iraqi authorities later clarified as a publishing error.
Hezbollah, Ansar Allah wrongly listed in official gazette
The erroneous inclusion sparked concern in Iraq and beyond.

Critics warned that the listing could jeopardize Iraq’s relationships with key regional partners.

Officials quickly issued clarifications, affirming that Iraq had not formally designated either group as a “terrorist organization”. Iraqi counterterrorism measures, they said, apply strictly to groups such as ISIS and al-Qaeda.

Al-Sudani reaffirms Iraq’s official policy stance
During Tuesday’s cabinet session, al-Sudani endorsed the committee’s report, which focused on administrative accountability and affirmed Iraq’s independent approach to implementing international resolutions.

The government emphasized that the content mistakenly published was not reflective of Baghdad’s foreign policy.

The committee’s work was linked to Decision No. 61 of 2025 issued by the Committee for Freezing Terrorists’ Assets and was meant to comply with UN obligations. However, Iraqi leadership clarified that no new domestic designation had been made against Hezbollah or Ansar Allah.