US Sanctions Several Entities and Individuals for Financing IRGC and Houthis
The US Department of Treasury announced that it has sanctioned several entities and individuals for their cooperation in financing the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and Yemen’s Houthi militias. The United States has also removed three former Iranian officials from its sanctions list.
On Thursday, June 10, the US Department of Treasury issued a statement announcing that it had sanctioned “several members of a smuggling network that raises millions of dollars for Iran-backed Houthis.”
The statement noted that this network, led by an individual named Saeed Al-Jamal, generated “tens of millions of dollars” from the sale of goods such as Iranian fuel, with the majority of these revenues reaching Yemeni Houthis through a network of intermediary groups and money changers in several countries.
The sanctioned individuals include two Yemenis, two Syrians, one Emirati, one Somali, and one Indian national.
The entities are based in Dubai, Istanbul, and Sanaa, the capital of Yemen controlled by the Houthis.
In the same statement, the US Department of Treasury noted that since the start of Yemen’s civil war, the Houthi militias have relied on assistance from the IRGC’s Quds Force.
The department also announced the removal of the names of three former Iranian officials from its sanctions list.
In a statement published on the Department of Treasury website, it was noted that Ahmad Qaleh-bani, the former chief executive of the National Iranian Oil Company, has been removed from the sanctions list.
Additionally, two companies that were previously on the sanctions list for acquiring, selling, transferring, or marketing Iranian petrochemical products have been removed from the US sanctions list.
The Department of Treasury stated that this delisting was due to changes in the behavior or status of these sanctioned individuals and entities, demonstrating Washington’s commitment to lifting sanctions in the event of behavioral changes.
Source: DW
