The Office of Foreign Assets Control announced the following sanctions action last week.
Iran-related Sanctions
- OFAC designates Chinese importers of Iranian oil: OFAC on April 16 designated China-based independent “teapot” refinery Shandong Shengxing Chemical Co., Ltd. for its role in purchasing more than a billion dollars’ worth of Iranian crude oil, including from a front company for Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps-Qods Force (IRGC-QF). OFAC is also imposing additional sanctions on several companies and vessels responsible for facilitating Iranian oil shipments to China as part of Iran’s “shadow fleet.” Read more.
- Related to this action, OFAC issued an Advisory for Shipping and Maritime Stakeholders on Detecting and Mitigating Iranian Oil Sanctions Evasion. The advisory updates the September 2019 version to include implementation of President Trump’s Feb. 4, 2025 National Security Presidential Memorandum (NSPM-2), which imposes a policy of maximum pressure on the Government of Iran. NSPM-2 directs Treasury to implement a robust and continual sanctions enforcement campaign to deny the Iranian regime and its terror proxies access to revenue and, in coordination with the Department of State, to drive Iranian oil exports to zero. Read more.
Foreign Terrorist Organization Sanctions
- OFAC sanctions International Bank of Yemen for supporting the Houthis: OFAC on April 17 sanctioned Yemen-based International Bank of Yemen Y.S.C. (IBY) for its financial support to OFAC-designated Ansarallah, commonly known as the Houthis, which is part of the Iran threat network. As part of this designation, OFAC is also sanctioning key leaders or officials of IBY, Kamal Hussain Al Jebry, Ahmed Thabit Noman Al-Absi, and Abdulkader Ali Bazara. The designation of IBY complements the whole-of-government effort to stop Iran-backed Houthi attacks against commercial shipping in the Red Sea. This action is being taken pursuant to the counterterrorism authority, Executive Order 13224, as amended. Read more.
- Related to this action, OFAC issued Counter Terrorism General License 33, “Authorizing the Wind Down of Transactions Involving International Bank of Yemen (IBY).” Read more.
- OFAC sanctions leaders of La Nueva Familia Michoacana drug cartel: OFAC sanctions leaders of La Nueva Familia Michoacana drug cartel: OFAC on April 15 sanctioned four individuals affiliated with La Nueva Familia Michoacana (LNFM), a Mexican drug cartel designated as a Foreign Terrorist Organization and a Specially Designated Global Terrorist. In addition to trafficking fentanyl and illicit drugs into the United States, LNFM’s crimes also include the smuggling of illegal aliens into the United States and violence against its rivals and Mexican security forces, utilizing drones and bombs in addition to conventional firearms. Those sanctioned on April 15, all of whom are siblings, include the group’s notorious co-leaders: Johnny Hurtado Olascoaga and Jose Alfredo Hurtado Olascoaga. Read more.
- TFTC designates al-Shabaab networks in Somalia: The Terrorist Financing Targeting Center on April 14 designated 15 al-Shabaab leaders, operatives, and financial facilitators operating in Somalia. TFTC, of which the United States is a member, was established in 2017 to enhance multilateral cooperation against terrorist financing between the United States and the Gulf Cooperation Council members: Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates. The 15 designees were involved in a wide range of activities in support of al-Shabaab, including fundraising and proliferation of Improvised Explosive Devices. This is the eighth round of joint designations by the TFTC. Read more.
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