US targets Iran’s aviation sector with fresh sanctions

The United States has imposed sanctions on 27 Iranian airlines and several companies in other countries as Washington increases economic pressure on Iran.

The US Treasury Department said the sanctions cover 36 targets accused of supporting Iran’s aviation sector, which it said is used to transport weapons, personnel and illegal cargo.

The affected companies include firms in the United Arab Emirates, Turkey, Malaysia and Kazakhstan.

“Essentially, we’re taking the entire aviation sector of the Iranian economy out of the market,” a US Treasury official told reporters anonymously.

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The sanctions come amid the ongoing conflict between the United States and Iran, which began in late February after US and Israeli strikes killed Iran’s supreme leader and senior military officials.

Iran later retaliated by blocking the Strait of Hormuz, a move that pushed global oil prices higher as the conflict spread across the Middle East.

US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Washington was determined to cut off Iran’s financial support.

“Under Operation Economic Outcast, we promised severe consequences for those providing financial lifelines to the Iranian regime,” Bessent said in a statement on Tuesday.

He warned that companies doing business with Iran’s remaining airlines could lose access to the global financial system.

The Treasury also sanctioned companies in other countries accused of supporting Mahan Air, an Iranian airline that Washington says has links to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).

According to the department, some of the targeted firms helped with Mahan Air’s international flights, aircraft procurement and other activities.

The latest sanctions also cover cargo service providers and general sales agents that have worked with Mahan Air.

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