The US Department of the Treasury announced on Thursday (July 3) that it has imposed a new round of sanctions on an Iranian oil smuggling network involving billions of dollars and its fleet of ships. Simultaneously, several senior executives of the financial institution Al-Qard Al-Hassan, controlled by the Hezbollah party in Lebanon, were also sanctioned.
This marks the eighth round of sanctions targeting Iranian oil trade since President Trump signed National Security Presidential Memorandum 2 on February 4th, initiating the maximum pressure campaign against Iran.
The Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) of the US Department of the Treasury announced on Thursday the sanctions on a business network led by Iraqi-British businessman Salim Ahmed Said, alleging that since 2020, they have been disguising Iranian oil as Iraqi oil and exporting it to Western markets through false documentation. This scheme has directed some profits to the elite IRGC-QF of the Iran Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, designated by the US as a “foreign terrorist organization.”
The US authorities stated that Said effectively controls several enterprises registered in the UAE and the UK, including VS Tankers, VS Oil, VS Petroleum DMCC, and Rhine Shipping, which have facilitated Iran in evading sanctions through methods like mixing oils, ship-to-ship transfers, and falsifying origins. They have also been directly sending cash to Iran, serving as a source of funding for governmental and military agencies.
Vessels associated with this network, such as DIJILAH, MOLECULE, VIZURI, and several ships registered in Seychelles, the British Virgin Islands, the Marshall Islands, and Panama (like FOTIS, THEMIS, BIANCA JOYSEL), have been identified as members of the “shadow fleet” and included in the sanctions list.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent emphasized, “The Iranian leadership chooses extremism over peace, and we will continue to cut off their sources of funding to prevent their destabilizing behavior.”
The State Department, in accordance with Executive Order 13846, imposed sanctions on six other entities and four vessels connected with Iran’s oil trade. These vessels are suspected of engaging in ship-to-ship transfers, including in the Strait of Malacca, to conceal the origins of the oil.
On the same day, the Treasury Department also announced sanctions on seven senior executives related to Al-Qard Al-Hassan Association (AQAH) and one of its subsidiary companies. Despite being designated for sanctions by OFAC since 2007, the top brass of the institution have continued exploiting Lebanon’s legitimate banking system for “shadow financial operations,” using fake accounts to channel funds to Hezbollah, further undermining Lebanon’s fragile economy.
Individuals sanctioned in this round include AQAH’s financial director Nehme Ahmad Jamil, branch manager Ali Ahmad Krisht, and gold procurement chief Ali Mohamad Karnib. They have long been involved in activities like setting up accounts through proxies, conducting mirror trades, and purchasing precious metals to assist Hezbollah in money laundering and enhancing its military capabilities.
One of the named companies, Tashilat SARL, jointly owned by several sanctioned individuals, provided funds to Hezbollah in 2006 under the guise of a mortgage loan.
According to OFAC regulations, all individuals and entities subjected to sanctions will have their assets within the US or held by US persons frozen. Foreign financial institutions dealing with these entities may also face secondary sanctions risks.
The US stresses that the ultimate goal of sanctions is to alter the behavior of the targeted entities rather than impose permanent punishment, leaving open the possibility of removing relevant individuals from the specially designated nationals (SDN) list.