Adding to the pressure from the Trump administration’s new blockade of Iranian oil tankers, the Treasury Department on April 15 announced Operation “Economic Fury,” a new round of “intensified pressure on Iran’s illicit oil transportation infrastructure.” The measures include sanctions on “more than two dozen individuals, companies, and vessels operating within the network of Iranian oil shipping magnate Mohammad Hossein Shamkhani,” the son of now-deceased senior Iranian security official Ali Shamkhani.
In addition to sanctions, the statement outlined actions it will take to go after Iranian assets held in banks abroad. “Financial institutions should be on notice that the department is leveraging the full range of available tools and authorities and is prepared to deploy secondary sanctions against foreign financial institutions that continue to support Iran’s activities,” the statement said.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has reportedly sent a letter to China, Hong Kong, UAE, and Oman about this, ordering them to take “swift action to identify and stop any illicit activity linked to Iran to avoid further action from Treasury,” reported Reuters.
