By chatnewstv.com
WASHINGTON — The United States on Thursday announced a new wave of sanctions targeting Iranian security officials and a notorious women’s prison, while moving to dismantle “shadow banking” networks used to fund the regime’s activities.
The measures, announced by the State Department and the Department of the Treasury, include the designation of Fardis Prison, where U.S. officials say women have been subjected to “cruel, inhuman, and degrading treatment” during the regime’s ongoing crackdown on civil rights protesters.
“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,” said Thomas “Tommy” Pigott, Principal Deputy Spokesperson for the State Department.
Among the high-ranking officials sanctioned is Ali Larijani, the Secretary of the Supreme Council for National Security. The Treasury Department also designated 18 individuals and entities accused of operating clandestine financial networks to launder proceeds from Iranian petroleum and petrochemical sales.
The Biden administration characterized the move as a dual effort to punish human rights abuses and cut off the regime’s international revenue streams.
“The United States stands with the Iranian people, who are protesting for their natural rights,” Pigott said in a statement. “The regime continues to fund destabilizing and malign activities around the world, rather than investing in the welfare of its people at home.”
The sanctions were issued under several executive orders and the Countering America’s Adversaries Through Sanctions Act. The action also serves to implement National Security Presidential Memorandum-2 of 2025, further tightening the net on Iran’s access to the global banking system.
U.S. officials stated they would continue to deny the Iranian government access to financial networks as long as the oppression of domestic protesters continues.
