U.S. Targets Iranian Oil Shipments: Sanctions Imposed on Syrian Entities

The U.S. Department of Treasury has imposed sanctions on over a dozen entities and vessels for their role in transporting Iranian crude oil and liquid petroleum gas to Syria and East Asia. The sanctions also target ships linked to Syrian magnate Abdul Jalil Mallah and his brother Luay al-Mallah.

The U.S. Department of Treasury on Wednesday launched new sanctions targeting more than a dozen entities and vessels connected to the shipment of Iranian crude oil and liquid petroleum gas to Syria and East Asia. These actions were conducted on behalf of Iran's Revolutionary Guards and Hezbollah.

Included in the sanctions are four ships tied to the fleet of Syrian shipping magnate Abdul Jalil Mallah and his brother, Luay al-Mallah. The Treasury Department emphasized that Luay al-Mallah was specifically designated under the new sanctions imposed on Wednesday.

According to the Treasury, the brothers have persistently used their shipping enterprises to aid Iran's harmful activities and those of its proxy groups. 'Iran continues to heavily depend on the illicit sale of oil and liquid petroleum gas, orchestrated by the Revolutionary Guards and Hezbollah, to finance its terrorist proxies and destabilizing actions,' stated Bradley T. Smith, the acting under secretary of the Treasury for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence.

(With inputs from agencies.)