Shafaq News/ Iraqi government has received indirect messages emphasizing the prevention of financial allocations for senior leaders of armed factions affiliated with the Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF), a government source revealed on Sunday.

The source told Shafaq News that American messages were conveyed to government parties through intermediaries, stressing the prohibition of allocating funds related to private dealings for investment and cooperative projects linked to PMF leaders.

He indicated that the messages suggested the potential for upcoming decisions by the US Treasury Department, “which could impose sanctions on these leaders, as well as on institutions or projects under their supervision.”

In response, a source at the Central Bank of Iraq, who requested, told Shafaq News that "the bank is not responsible for or involved with the salaries or allowances of the PMF, and any notifications regarding this issue will not reach us directly."

The source further clarified that "the Central Bank is the state bank of Iraq, and it processes financial transactions for the government based on official and legitimate records."

On February 24 a political source informed Shafaq News that the Iraqi Ministry of Foreign Affairs has been making efforts to prevent the issuance of US sanctions against Iraq, which could target companies and names of leaders within the PMF.

The source, who requested anonymity, revealed that "American sanctions may be imposed soon and will target a list of political figures associated with armed factions,” explaining that the list includes more than ten names, some of which belong to PMF leaders, while others are well-known figures with ties to influential political powers."

He warned that the "relations with the United States could escalate, to control the flow of money in Iraq and weaken what the US administration labels as Iran's proxies, while halting Tehran's access to hard currency through intermediaries."

Additionally, the source noted that "three financial companies and three transportation companies operating within the Iraqi oil fleet are also expected to be included in the U.S. blacklist, as part of pressure to stop the smuggling of currency and oil to Iran."

On February 16, an Iraqi government official informed Shafaq News that the Iraqi authorities had received official notification of new US sanctions targeting five Iraqi banks for involvement in illicit financial transactions both within Iraq and abroad.

The source also revealed that Iraq had been informed that a US decision would soon be implemented to ban the use of all electronic payment cards abroad for the next two months. This move aims to prevent the smuggling of currency overseas through these cards after suspicious financial activities were detected by the US team tasked with tracking financial movements within Iraq.