The Office of Foreign Assets Control announced the following sanctions action last week.
Venezuela-related Sanctions
- OFAC issues General License 41A: OFAC on March 4 issued Venezuela General License 41A to authorize the wind down of certain transactions related to Chevron Corporation’s joint ventures in Venezuela involving Petróleos de Venezuela, S.A. (PdVSA) or any entity in which PdVSA owns. GL 41A authorizes certain transactions through April 3, and replaces General License 41 dated Nov. 26, 2022. Read more.
Terrorism-related Sanctions
- OFAC designates Houthi leaders involved in smuggling and procuring weapons: OFAC on March 5 designated seven high-ranking members of Ansarallah, commonly known as the Houthis, for their roles in smuggling military-grade items and weapon systems into Houthi-controlled areas of Yemen. This action follows the State Department’s designation of Ansarallah as a Foreign Terrorist Organization (FTO) on March 4. OFAC designated Mohammad Abdulsalam, Eshaq Abdulmalek Abdullah Almarwani, Mahdi Mohammed Hussein Al-Mashat, Mohamed Ali Al-Houthi, Ali Muhammad Muhsin Salih Al-Hadi, Abdulmalek Abdullah Mohammed E Alagri and Khaled Hussein Saleh Gaber. OFAC also designated one Houthi-affiliated operative, Abdulwali Abdoh Hasan Al-Jabri and his company, Al-Jabri General Trading and Investment Co that have recruited Yemeni civilians to fight on behalf of Russia in Ukraine and generated revenue to support the Houthis’ militant operations. Read more.
- Related to this action, OFAC issued Counter Terrorism General License 22A, “Transactions Related to the Provision of Agricultural Commodities, Medicine, Medical Devices, Replacement Parts and Components, or Software Updates Involving Ansarallah”; Counter Terrorism General License 23A, “Authorizing Transactions Related to Telecommunications, Mail, and Certain Internet-Based Communications Involving Ansarallah”; Counter Terrorism General License 24A, “Authorizing Noncommercial, Personal Remittances Involving Ansarallah”; Counter Terrorism General License 25A, “Authorizing the Offloading of Refined Petroleum Products in Yemen Involving Ansarallah”; Counter Terrorism General License 26A, “Authorizing Certain Transactions Necessary to Port and Airport Operations Involving Ansarallah”; and Counter Terrorism General License 28A, “Authorizing Transactions for Third-Country Diplomatic and Consular Missions Involving Ansarallah”. Additionally, OFAC issued a new Counter Terrorism Frequently Asked Question 1219 to clarify certain OFAC licensing actions related to Ansarallah. Note that activities authorized by GLs issued by OFAC do not relieve persons from compliance with any other laws, including criminal laws prohibiting the provision of material support to FTOs.
Cyber-related Sanctions
- OFAC sanctions China-based hacker involved in the compromise of sensitive U.S. victim networks: OFAC on March 5 designated Zhou Shuai, a Shanghai-based malicious cyber actor and data broker, and his company, Shanghai Heiying Information Technology Company, Limited for their roles in compromising sensitive U.S. victims’ information. In collaboration with another malicious cyber actor, U.S.-sanctioned Yin Kecheng, Zhou Shuai illegally acquired, brokered, and sold data from highly sensitive U.S. critical infrastructure networks. Malicious cyber actors, particularly those operating in China, continue to be one of the greatest and most persistent threats to U.S. national security, as highlighted in the Office of the Director of National Intelligence’s most recent Annual Threat Assessment. Read more.
Counter-narcotics-related Sanctions
- OFAC sanctions head of Nemesis, a darknet marketplace tied to fentanyl sales: OFAC on March 4 designated Iran-based Behrouz Parsarad, the sole administrator of Nemesis, an online darknet marketplace with built-in money laundering features used by narcotics traffickers and cybercriminals to openly trade in illegal drugs and services, which was subject of an international law enforcement operation and was taken down in 2024. Prior to its takedown Nemesis had over 30,000 active users and 1,000 vendors and facilitated the sale of nearly $30 million worth of drugs around the world between 2021 and 2024, including to the United States. Read more.
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