US imposes fresh sanctions on Iran’s security chiefs over protest crackdown

Iran's Supreme National Security Council Secretary Ali Larijani (REUTERS)

• US sanctions five Iranian officials over protest crackdown
• Treasury targets commanders and security officials for suppressing unrest
• Eighteen more individuals sanctioned for laundering Iranian oil proceeds

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The United States on Thursday imposed fresh sanctions on senior Iranian officials over what it described as a brutal crackdown on nationwide protests, stepping up pressure on Tehran under President Donald Trump’s revived “maximum pressure” campaign.

In a statement, the US Treasury Department said five Iranian officials were sanctioned for their alleged role in coordinating the state response to the unrest that erupted in December. Those designated include Ali Larijani, the secretary of Iran’s Supreme Council for National Security, whom Washington identified as a key figure behind the use of force against demonstrators.

The sanctions, announced by US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, also target senior commanders from the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and Iran’s law enforcement agencies.

The Treasury accused them of playing central roles in suppressing protests that began over rising prices and later evolved into one of the most serious challenges to the clerical establishment since the 1979 Islamic Revolution.

In a video message, Bessent warned Iran’s leadership that US authorities were tracking funds allegedly moved out of the country. “US Treasury knows that, like rats on a sinking ship, you are frantically wiring funds stolen from Iranian families to banks and financial institutions around the world,” he said, adding that such transfers would be pursued globally.

Bessent said Iranian leaders still had a chance to change course. “As President Trump has said, stop the violence and stand with the people of Iran,” he said.

According to the US-based Human Rights Activists News Agency, or HRANA, at least 2,435 protesters and 153 government-affiliated individuals have been killed since the unrest began.

Trump has repeatedly warned of possible US intervention in support of protesters, as Iranian authorities continue a hard crackdown on demonstrations that started on December 28.

“The United States stands firmly with the Iranian people in their call for freedom and justice,” Bessent said, adding that the Treasury would use every available tool to target those responsible for human rights abuses.

Separately, the Treasury also imposed sanctions on 18 individuals accused of helping launder proceeds from Iranian petroleum and petrochemical sales through so-called shadow banking networks linked to sanctioned Iranian financial institutions.

Thursday’s measures are the latest in a series of actions aimed at curbing Iran’s oil exports and preventing Tehran from developing nuclear weapons.

(With agency inputs)