US Slaps Sweeping New Sanctions on Iran Amid Escalating Protests

US Slaps Sweeping New Sanctions on Iran Amid Escalating Protests

The United States on Thursday unveiled a broad new package of sanctions against Iran, targeting senior security officials, a prison accused of systematic abuse, and an extensive network of front companies allegedly used to funnel billions of dollars from oil and petrochemical sales. The move comes as nationwide protests continue to challenge Iran’s leadership.

The coordinated action, announced by the State Department and the Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), is aimed at what US officials described as the key figures behind the government’s violent response to largely peaceful demonstrations, as well as the financial systems that underpin that repression.

“This is about standing with the Iranian people,” Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said in a statement. Acting on President Donald Trump’s direction, he added, the department is using its full range of tools to target leaders involved in what he called the regime’s “tyrannical oppression of human rights.”

A central element of the announcement was the designation of Fardis Prison, which US officials say has been the site of widespread abuse, particularly of women detainees. The State Department accused the facility of subjecting prisoners to cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment. The designation freezes any assets linked to the prison under US jurisdiction and bars Americans from engaging in transactions involving it.

At the same time, OFAC imposed sanctions on several senior Iranian security figures. Among them is Ali Larijani, secretary of Iran’s Supreme Council for National Security, whom US officials accuse of playing a leading role in directing the crackdown that followed protests erupting in December 2025. Treasury said Larijani was among the earliest senior officials to publicly advocate using force against demonstrators.

The protests, fueled by frustration over economic hardship, soaring inflation and political repression, have spread across multiple provinces. US officials allege that Iranian security forces have responded with lethal force, including firing live ammunition into crowds and assaulting wounded protesters in hospitals. In Ilam Province, elements of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) are accused of storming hospital grounds, using tear gas and metal pellets, and attacking patients, relatives and medical staff.

Iran Says Protester Erfan Soltani Not On Death Row Amid Trump’s Threats

Additional sanctions were imposed on provincial security commanders accused of overseeing violent crackdowns. Those named include Mohammad Reza Hashemifar and Nematollah Bagheri in Lorestan Province, as well as Azizollah Maleki and Yadollah Buali in Fars Province, which includes the major city of Shiraz. According to Treasury, forces under their command killed protesters and, in some cases, withheld bodies to pressure families into delivering false statements on state television.

The measures extend well beyond individuals. US officials also targeted what they described as Iran’s “shadow banking” system — a web of covert financial channels used to move money through the global system despite existing sanctions. OFAC designated 18 individuals and entities linked to these networks, which rely on front companies and foreign exchange houses to launder proceeds from oil and petrochemical exports.

“These networks are the primary means through which Iran facilitates tens of billions of dollars in trade each year,” Treasury said, adding that the money is often diverted away from the public and toward domestic repression and militant activities abroad.

Two state-linked lenders, Bank Melli and Shahr Bank, were singled out as central nodes in these operations. Treasury said Bank Melli manages a complex network of so-called “rahbar” companies that handle international transactions through layers of cover firms across multiple jurisdictions. At the heart of that structure, officials said, are Iran-based Nikan Pezhvak Aria Kish Company, UAE-based Empire International Trading FZE, and Singapore-based Golden Mist PTE. Ltd., all accused of helping route oil revenues.

According to US authorities, Bank Melli’s network has processed billions of dollars since 2024 for entities including the National Iranian Oil Company, the IRGC and the Central Bank of Iran, using falsified invoices and cross-border transfers to obscure the origin of funds.

Shahr Bank, Treasury said, operates a similar system through UAE-based HMS Trading FZE and Iran-based Tejarat Hermes Energy Qeshm, supported by a wider constellation of front companies in the Gulf and Europe. Some of those firms allegedly moved tens of millions of dollars linked to Iranian oil shipments to Asian markets.

Under US law, the designations freeze any property or financial interests of the listed individuals and entities that fall under US jurisdiction. Americans are generally prohibited from doing business with them, and foreign companies or banks that continue dealings risk secondary sanctions.

State Department spokesman Tommy Pigott said the goal is to cut off Tehran’s access to global financial networks while it continues to suppress dissent at home.

“The United States stands with the Iranian people, who are protesting for their natural rights,” Pigott said. “The regime keeps funding destabilizing activities abroad instead of investing in the well-being of its own citizens.”

The sanctions were imposed under a range of executive orders and US laws addressing human rights abuses and Iran’s energy and financial sectors. They also advance the administration’s National Security Presidential Memorandum-2, part of what Treasury describes as a renewed campaign of “maximum economic pressure.”

US officials stressed that the objective is to force a change in behavior, not punishment for its own sake. Still, with protests continuing and Tehran showing little sign of easing its response, Thursday’s sweeping measures signal that Washington is prepared to intensify economic and diplomatic pressure as events unfold inside Iran.