Iraq denies US claims deputy oil minister helped Iran evade sanctions

Iraq’s Oil Ministry denied US accusations that Deputy Oil Minister Ali Maarij al-Bahadli helped Iran evade sanctions, as Washington ramps up pressure on Baghdad to disarm factions linked to Tehran.

The US State Department announced Thursday sanctions on Iraqi Deputy Oil Minister Ali Maarij al-Bahadli, saying he had “abused his government position to divert Iraqi oil in support of the Iranian regime and its terrorist proxies.”

Washington also accused him of fraud by mixing Iranian oil with Iraqi oil as part of a scheme to help the Islamic Republic bypass sanctions.

In response, Iraq’s Oil Ministry rejected the allegations against al-Bahadli on Thursday, stressing “the importance of transparency and responsibility in handling all issues and accusations based on evidence and facts,” according to the Iraqi News Agency (INA).

The ministry said it was ready to investigate the matter, but noted that “the export, marketing, tanker loading, and related procedures of crude oil” do not fall within al-Bahadli’s responsibilities.

Last year, the US Treasury Department imposed sanctions on entities run by an Iraqi businessman over similar accusations.

At the time, Iraq’s State Organization for Marketing of Oil (SOMO) denied any oil-mixing operations in the country’s ports or territorial waters in favor of Iran, whose oil exports are under US sanctions.

While Iran maintains close ties with major Iraqi parties, Washington has intensified pressure on Baghdad to move toward disarming Tehran-backed factions, which the United States classifies as terrorist groups.

Since the launch of the US-‘Israeli’ war on Iran on February 28, these groups have carried out more than 600 attacks on US facilities and interests in Iraq.