U.S. Special Envoy to Iraq Mark Savaya is seen during a meeting aboard an aircraft, in a photo he published on X alongside remarks criticizing corruption and militia financing in Iraq.
US envoy links militias to entrenched corruption networks in Iraq
BAGHDAD — The United States special envoy to the Republic of Iraq, Mark Savaya, said corruption must be confronted as a priority to address armed groups and restore stability in the country, arguing that militias are sustained by long-standing illicit financial networks.
In a post on X, Savaya wrote, “If Iraq is to be fixed, corruption must be confronted first and decisively. Militias are a symptom. Corruption is the disease.”
Savaya said he has detailed knowledge of how illicit funds move through layered systems designed to evade accountability. “I know in detail how illicit money is channeled. It does not flow only through senior principals. More importantly, it moves through layers of lower level actors such as family members, friends, guards, drivers, and intermediaries,” he wrote. “This structure creates insulation and deniability while keeping the system fully operational.”
He described the system as deeply entrenched, writing, “This is a highly complex and deliberately constructed network that has been active for more than two decades. It has successfully bypassed regulations, compliance frameworks, and international auditing mechanisms.”
Savaya said the networks have enabled armed groups aligned with Iran to operate. “Through this system, Iranian backed militia groups have been financially empowered, protected, and sustained,” he wrote.
He said any effort to address armed groups and restore state authority must start with dismantling corruption. “Any serious effort to stabilize Iraq, restore sovereignty, and dismantle militias must begin with dismantling the corruption networks that finance and protect them,” Savaya wrote. “The sources of massive corrupt money such as fake payrolls, fake loans, and fictitious assets must stop.”
He concluded, “Without that, every other effort will fail.”
U.S. Special Envoy to Iraq Mark Savaya has repeatedly – and publicly – urged Iraqi leaders to confront the presence of armed groups operating outside state authority as part of efforts to strengthen sovereignty and stability. On Nov. 30, 2025, Savaya said Iraq has a “historic opportunity” to disarm non-state actors, warning that weapons held by militias threaten security, political stability and economic growth, and calling for the reinforcement of state institutions.
The remarks come as the United States has stepped up financial pressure on Iraq’s banking sector in recent years over corruption and illicit funding networks. In November 2023, Iraqi authorities restricted several local banks from conducting U.S. dollar transactions following consultations with U.S. officials over money laundering and dollar smuggling concerns. The measures expanded in January 2024, when additional banks were barred from access to dollar auctions after U.S. Treasury warnings that weak compliance and illicit transfers could enable sanctioned entities and armed groups.