US escalates sanctions on Iranian officials as Trump considers military options
As the threat of a possible U.S. attack against Iran looms, President Donald Trump's administration has announced additional sanctions targeting Iranian figures.
The Treasury Department announced Friday that its Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) "took additional action against Iranian officials responsible for the regime’s brutal crackdown on its own people."
"Among the officials sanctioned today is Eskandar Momeni Kalagari, Iran’s minister of the interior who oversees the murderous Law Enforcement Forces of the Islamic Republic of Iran (LEF), a key entity responsible for the deaths of thousands of peaceful protesters," the department said.
"OFAC also designated Babak Morteza Zanjani, a criminal Iranian investor who previously embezzled billions of dollars in Iranian oil revenue that rightfully belonged to the Iranian people and was never fully recovered. Freed from imprisonment in order to launder money for the regime, Zanjani has provided financial backing for major projects that support the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and the Iranian regime more broadly."
The Treasury Department also noted that OFAC designated two digital asset exchanges linked to Zanjani that "have processed large volumes of funds associated with IRGC-linked counterparties."
The announcement comes as the Trump administration prepares for the possibility of military action against Iran.
Trump issued a saber-rattling Truth Social post Wednesday warning that the U.S. will attack if Iran does not negotiate a nuclear deal.
Trump suggested in a Truth Social post Wednesday that the U.S. could use force against Iran if a nuclear deal is not reached soon.
"A massive Armada is heading to Iran. It is moving quickly, with great power, enthusiasm, and purpose. It is a larger fleet, headed by the great Aircraft Carrier Abraham Lincoln, than that sent to Venezuela. Like with Venezuela, it is, ready, willing, and able to rapidly fulfill its mission, with speed and violence, if necessary. Hopefully Iran will quickly ‘Come to the Table’ and negotiate a fair and equitable deal - NO NUCLEAR WEAPONS - one that is good for all parties," the president warned in a Truth Social post Wednesday.
IRAN RESPONDS TO TRUMP PRESSURE WITH WARNING OF RETALIATION: ‘FINGERS ON THE TRIGGER’
The commander in chief has in recent days been supplied with an expanded list of possible military actions against Iran to inflict additional damage on the foreign nation's nuclear and missile sites or weaken the Islamic Republic's supreme leader, The New York Times reported on Thursday, citing U.S. officials.
The military options go further than those the president was previously mulling earlier this month to fulfill his pledge to stop the slaughter of protesters, officials reportedly said.
The current list of options includes the prospect of U.S. forces executing raids inside the nation of Iran, according to the Times, which indicated that the protests have been crushed.