The United States on Tuesday imposed sanctions on nearly 50 entities and individuals it said were involved in Iran’s efforts to provide billions of dollars in aid to terrorist groups such as Hamas, Hezbollah and the Houthis.
“The United States is taking action against a vast shadow banking system that Iran’s military has used to launder billions of dollars in oil proceeds and other illicit revenue,” U.S. Treasury Undersecretary Wally Adeyemo said in a statement.
“We will continue to pursue those who seek to fund Iran’s destabilizing terrorist activities,” he added, noting that the Biden administration had previously “sanctioned hundreds of targets for involvement in Iran’s illicit oil and petrochemical-related activities.”
The United States recently took punitive measures against Iran and cut off funding for terrorist groups it supports. In the previous months, Lebanon’s Hezbollah has stepped up its attacks on Israel’s northern border, and Yemen’s Houthi rebels have also been attacking merchant ships in the Red Sea. Hamas launched an attack on Israel on October 7, triggering the Gaza war. Since then, both Hezbollah and the Houthis have said they are allied with Hamas.
Tensions between Israel and Iran have also been rising in recent months. Drone and missile attacks on Israel Earlier, Israel attacked the Iranian embassy in Syria, killing several senior Iranian commanders.
The move to cut off funding to Iran and its proxies targets more than two dozen companies based in Hong Kong, the United Arab Emirates and the Marshall Islands that the Treasury Department says have ties to Iranian or Turkish currency exchanges and businesses that help Iranian military groups hide overseas revenue. U.S. officials say the funds were used to buy and develop advanced weapons such as drones and to supply Iranian proxies.
Concerns about Iran’s role in supporting militant groups in the Middle East have also been raised. A series of meetings in Washington highlighted Senior U.S. government officials held talks this week with Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant.
