The U.S. Sanctions a Network of Suppliers for the Islamic Republic's Missile and Drone Program

The Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) of the U.S. Treasury Department announced on Friday, February 2, the sanctioning of a "key procurement network of active suppliers of materials and sensitive technologies for the ballistic missile and drone programs" of the Islamic Republic. Accordingly, the U.S. has sanctioned six senior members of the Cyber-Electronic Command of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), one company based in Iran, and four companies based in Hong Kong. According to OFAC's statement, the four companies based in Hong Kong and Iran operate as "secret procurement entities for Hamid Dehghan and the company Pishrodan Kavoosh Gostar Bashra," which are supporters of the IRGC. Additionally, a company based in Hong Kong was sanctioned for providing contracts and selling hundreds of millions of dollars worth of Iranian goods to officials of the IRGC's Quds Force, including Rostam Qasemi, the former oil minister who passed away last year. Brian Nelson, the Deputy Secretary of the Treasury for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence, referred to the ongoing proliferation of advanced conventional weapons by the Islamic Republic as "a critical threat to stability in the region" and stated that the U.S. will target illegal networks supplying parts for Iranian-made weapons and hold accountable those exporting these weapons to terrorist proxy groups. According to OFAC's statement, the four companies based in Hong Kong and the company Narin Sepehr Mobin Isatis, also known as Pishrodan San'at Parvaz Sadra LLC, have been added to the list of specially designated entities under OFAC sanctions. OFAC simultaneously announced the sanctioning of six officials from the Cyber-Electronic Command of the IRGC. Brian Nelson described the cyberattacks by the Islamic Republic on critical infrastructure as "dangerous" and stated that the U.S. will not tolerate such actions and will hold accountable those responsible for such attacks. The sanctioned individuals include: Hamidreza Lashgariyan, born April 1, 1961, head of the Cyber-Electronic Command of the IRGC and a member of the Quds Force; Hamid Homayounfal, born February 14, 1987, senior member of the Cyber-Electronic Command of the IRGC; Mehdi Lashgariyan, born June 2, 1989, senior member of the Cyber-Electronic Command of the IRGC; Milad Mansouri, born September 11, 1989, senior member of the Cyber-Electronic Command of the IRGC; Mohammad Amin Saberian, born February 1, 1979, senior member of the Cyber-Electronic Command of the IRGC; and Mohammad Baqer Shirin Kar, born September 21, 1979, senior member of the Cyber-Electronic Command of the IRGC. The U.S. has also sanctioned several companies in Turkey and Lebanon due to their connections with Hezbollah and the IRGC. The U.S. and the UK sanctioned 11 individuals linked to the Islamic Republic for "transnational repression." They also sanctioned four senior military officials of the Houthis. New sanctions were imposed by the U.S. against Kata'ib Hezbollah in Iraq and Hamas, increasing pressure on the IRGC's Quds Force. The U.S. sanctioned one individual and three entities facilitating financial aid from the Islamic Republic to the Houthis. Several individuals linked to the Quds Force and Palestinian militia groups were also sanctioned. New sanctions from the U.S. and the UK against Hamas financing networks in several countries were announced. The European Union sanctioned six individuals and five entities related to the Islamic Republic's drone assistance to Russia. The U.S. sanctioned two officials of the Islamic Republic.