Newsletters
The United States announced sweeping sanctions Thursday targeting senior Iranian security officials and financial networks, as demonstrations continue across Iran amid what Washington characterizes as a violent government response.
The Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Assets Control imposed the measures on individuals described by US officials as architects of Iran's crackdown on protesters, along with what the agency called "shadow banking networks that allow Iran's elite to steal and launder revenue generated by the country's natural resources."
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the US stands "firmly" behind the Iranian people in their call for "freedom and justice," adding that the sanctions came at President Donald Trump's direction.
Among those sanctioned is Ali Larijani, secretary of Iran's Supreme Council for National Security. According to the Treasury statement, Larijani was among the first senior leaders to publicly call for violence in response to the protests.
The measures come as latest US effort to pressure Tehran over its handling of demonstrations that have roiled the country. Iranian authorities have not released official casualty figures, but the US-based Human Rights Activists News Agency estimates more than 2,600 people have been killed, including both protesters and security personnel.
Iranian officials have rejected accusations of excessive force, instead accusing the US and Israel of backing what they describe as "riots" and "terrorism" in the unrest.
The Treasury Department designated 18 individuals and entities connected to what US officials describe as Iran's shadow banking system, accusing them of laundering oil and petrochemical revenues.
In a separate statement, the State Department announced the designation of Fardis Prison, which deputy spokesman Tommy Pigott described as "an institution where women have endured cruel, inhuman, and degrading treatment."
"As the brave people of Iran continue to fight for their basic rights, the Iranian regime has responded with violence and cruel repression against its own people," Pigott said.
President Trump has repeatedly pledged backing for Iranian protesters. Bessent said Treasury would "use every tool to target those behind the regime's tyrannical oppression of human rights."
Pigott added that Washington would "continue to deny the regime access to financial networks and the global banking system while it continues to oppress the Iranian people."
The sanctions freeze any US assets belonging to the designated individuals and entities and generally prohibit Americans from doing business with them.
Set as preferred source
1 min read
1 min read
