Former Iraqi Finance Minister Placed On US Terror Watch-list

ERBIL (Kurdistan24) - The US State Department has revoked the visa of Taif Sami Mohammed, Iraq's former finance minister, and placed her on the US terrorist watch-list, barring her from entering the United States, US news network Fox News reported on Friday, citing a senior State Department official.

The move marks a dramatic reversal for an official who, four years ago, was celebrated by Washington as one of the world's most courageous women. According to Fox News, then-Secretary of State Antony Blinken praised Mohammed as Iraq's "Iron Woman," crediting her with stopping bribes and uncovering schemes that enriched corrupt officials, despite threats against her.

Mohammed received the State Department's International Women of Courage Award in March 2022, when she served as Iraq's deputy finance minister and director general of its budget department. The State Department at the time described her as a "front-line leader against corrupt practices" who had helped prevent corruption in Iraq's budget, according to Fox News.

The ceremony, hosted by Blinken and featuring remarks from then-first lady Jill Biden, honored twelve women the department said had shown extraordinary courage and leadership.

Mohammed later rose to become Iraq's finance minister, overseeing the federal budget, government spending and Baghdad's financial relationship with the Kurdistan Region.

A State Department official told Fox News Digital that the department revoked Mohammed's visa this week. Assistant Secretary of State for Global Public Affairs Dylan Johnson said: "While the Biden State Department shamefully celebrated and awarded foreigners who threaten our nation, the Trump State Department revokes their visas and ensures these individuals are removed from our country. Under President Trump and Secretary Rubio, suspected terrorists will never be allowed to remain in the United States."

According to Fox News, the State Department did not immediately provide details about when Mohammed was placed on the terrorist watch-list or the intelligence that led to that determination.

Fox News reported that Mohammed's fall from Washington's favor had been building publicly for more than a year. Republican Reps. Joe Wilson of South Carolina and Greg Steube of Florida had previously accused her of helping facilitate terrorist financing through Iraq's financial system, calling her a "key enabler of terrorist funding in Iraq" and urging the Trump administration to impose sanctions on her.

Mohammed's difficulties have also extended to Iraq. An Iraqi court summoned her and placed her on a judicial wanted list as authorities widened a corruption investigation into former senior government officials, IraqiNews reported on Aug. 9, 2025, citing sources familiar with the proceedings. That investigation grew out of a broader corruption probe involving government contracts and large sums of public money, and has implicated other former Iraqi officials, according to the report.

Fox News noted that the Iraqi court action is part of an ongoing investigation and does not, on its own, establish that Mohammed committed wrongdoing. She is believed to be outside Iraq and has not been detained, according to the report.

It remains unclear whether Mohammed's placement on the US terrorist watchlist is connected to the terrorist financing allegations raised by members of Congress, the Iraqi corruption investigation, or separate intelligence findings.