US Treasury Sanctions Financial Networks Supporting Houthi Forces to Secure Shipping Routes

The US Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) has taken action against financial networks supporting Houthi forces in Yemen in order to secure international shipping routes in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden. This comes in response to increasing Houthi aggression, which has included attacking merchant ships and disrupting international trade, posing a direct threat to maritime security and free trade.

The Treasury Department has designated an individual and three organizations facilitating Iranian financial assistance to the Houthis, including currency exchanges in Yemen and Turkey. These individuals and groups are linked to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps’ Qods Force in Iran. As a result of the sanctions, all properties and interests of the designated persons in the United States or under the control of U.S. persons are blocked, and transactions involving these parties within the United States are prohibited.

Part of a broader strategy to disrupt the financial networks supporting the Houthis under Executive Order (EO) 13224, these sanctions aim to freeze assets and ban transactions with companies supporting the group, in order to disrupt the flow of illicit funds and reduce threats to vital shipping routes. The action signifies the importance of international cooperation in maintaining maritime security and the rule of law in strategically important regions like the Red Sea.

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