An Iraqi former government official who received a prominent State Department award during the Biden administration has now had her U.S. visa revoked after being placed on the federal government’s terrorism watchlist, according to reports and a statement from the State Department.
Taif Sami Mohammed Al Shakarchi, who previously served as Iraq’s minister of finance and held senior positions within the country’s Finance Ministry, had her visa revoked this week, the State Department confirmed to Fox News.
The department did not tell the outlet when Mohammed was placed on the terrorism watchlist or publicly detail the specific information that resulted in her inclusion.
We don’t allow suspected terrorists to reside in our country.
President Trump and Secretary Rubio took swift action to revoke Ms. Mohammed’s visa and ensure she is no longer in the United States. https://t.co/RHfLelNYdc pic.twitter.com/Pt9G5j11Oz
— Department of State (@StateDept) August 28, 2026
Assistant Secretary of State for Global Public Affairs Dylan Johnson used the visa decision to draw a sharp distinction between the current Trump administration and its predecessor.
“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,” Johnson told Fox News.
The development is particularly notable because Mohammed was honored by the same department just four years earlier.
In 2022, Mohammed received the State Department’s International Women of Courage Award. At the time, she was serving as Iraq’s deputy finance minister and director general of the country’s budget department.
The Biden-era State Department described Mohammed as a “frontline leader against corrupt practices” and credited her with playing a major role in efforts to prevent corruption involving Iraq’s national budget.
Then-Secretary of State Antony Blinken personally praised her record during the March 2022 awards ceremony.
According to Fox News, Blinken said Mohammed had “stopped bribes” and uncovered attempts to manipulate government payrolls in ways that would benefit corrupt officials.
Four years later, the State Department is presenting a dramatically different assessment.
In a Friday press release, the department said Mohammed “was presented an award by the Biden Administration for her purported role in fight corruption and her advocacy for ‘gender equity.’”
The statement confirmed that her visa had been revoked and identified her as an Iraqi national on the FBI terrorism watchlist.
Questions surrounding Mohammed had already emerged in Iraq before the latest U.S. action.
Fox News cited an August 9, 2025, report from IraqiNews stating that Mohammed had been placed “on a judicial wanted list” after an Iraqi court summoned her as part of a corruption investigation.
The information provided by the State Department does not establish publicly what connection, if any, exists between that Iraqi investigation and her placement on the U.S. terrorism watchlist. The department also has not publicly disclosed the underlying basis for the watchlist designation.
