OFAC Sanctions Network Helping to Finance Houthis
The Office of Foreign Assets Control this week sanctioned one person and three entities involved in helping Iran finance the Houthis, the political and military group in Yemen that has launched attacks in recent weeks on cargo vessels in the Red Sea.
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The designations target Al Aman Kargo Ithalat Ihracat Ve Nakliyat Limited Sirketi, a company that “serves as a waypoint” for money sent by the Houthis’ Iranian financiers to the group’s businesses in Yemen; Nabco Money Exchange and Remittance Co., which receives funds from Al Aman; and Al Rawda Exchange and Money Transfers Company, a company that converts those funds into Yemeni rials.
OFAC also sanctioned Nabil Ali Ahmed Al-Hadha, president of the Currency Exchangers Association in Houthi-controlled areas in Sanaa, Yemen. The agency said Al-Hadha transfers funds to and from Yemen and has received millions of dollars from Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps-Qods Force on behalf of Houthi financier Sa’id al-Jamal, who was sanctioned in 2021.
The designations come amid a rise in Houthi strikes on cargo ships, which has disrupted some international shipping as ocean carriers look to avoid the region (see 2312200045). Brian Nelson, Treasury’s undersecretary for terrorism and financial intelligence, said the group continues to “conduct dangerous attacks on international shipping and risk further destabilizing the region.” He said the U.S. and allies are planning more sanctions against “key facilitation networks that enable the destabilizing activities of the Houthis and their backers in Iran.”