US widens sanctions on Iran oil sector over Strait of Hormuz attacks, targeting Shamkhani network.
WASHINGTON: The United States on Tuesday expanded its sanctions targeting Iran’s oil sector, taking further aim at the network of petroleum shipping magnate Mohammad Hossein Shamkhani, said the Treasury Department.
The move came after US forces carried out a fourth straight day of strikes against Iran and reimposed a naval blockade, with Iran in turn hitting ships in the Strait of Hormuz, according to the International Maritime Organization.
Iran started blocking the strait — a key waterway for energy transit — after US-Israel attacks in February. After which, Washington imposed an initial blockade on Tehran’s ports from mid-April to mid-June.
“This action is part of Treasury’s ongoing efforts to ramp up economic pressure on the Iranian regime after it resumed destabilizing attacks in the Strait of Hormuz,” the Treasury Department said in a notice Tuesday.
It charged that the Shamkhani network remains a key force behind Iran’s oil exports, and has expanded into global commodities trading.
The latest move took aim at more than 50 individuals, entities and vessels that it said enabled Iranian authorities to reap profit.
The Treasury Department added that it has now imposed sanctions on over 200 individuals, entities and vessels operating under Shamkhani’s patronage.
Shamkhani is the son of security official Ali Shamkhani, an advisor to Iranian supreme leader Ali Khamenei.
Both were killed February 28, the first day of US-Israeli attacks and the start of the Middle East war.
