Iraq Retracts Designation of Hezbollah and Houthis as Terrorist Groups, Citing Premature Publication

Peregraf- Iraq has officially backtracked on the designation of Lebanon’s Hezbollah and Yemen’s Houthi Ansarullah movement as terrorist entities, clarifying that their inclusion in the latest terror-related asset-freeze list was the result of a premature and unfinalized publication.

In a statement issued on December 4, 2025, the Committee for the Blocking of Terrorists’ Assets — operating under the Central Bank of Iraq — clarified details surrounding Decision No. 61 (2025). This decision had appeared in the Iraqi Official Gazette, issue No. 4848, on November 17, 2025, and was widely understood as a formal Iraqi classification of Hezbollah and the Houthis as terrorist organizations/ 

According to the committee:

• The decision included measures to block the assets of entities and individuals linked to ISIS and Al-Qaeda, based on a request from the State of Malaysia and in compliance with UN Security Council Resolution 1373 (2001).

• Several names published in the list — including Hezbollah and the Houthis — have no connection to terrorist activity related to ISIS or Al-Qaeda.

• Iraq’s approval was limited only to the entities and individuals associated with ISIS and Al-Qaeda.

• The inclusion of unrelated groups was the result of the list being published before it was fully vetted and finalized.

• The erroneous entries will be removed from the list in the corrected version of the official gazette.

The committee emphasized that the publication error is being addressed and that Iraq’s official position does not classify Lebanese Hezbollah or Yemen’s Houthis as terrorist organizations under Decision No. 61.