US targets Iranian financier after Strait of Hormuz attacks
The United States on Friday imposed sanctions on Dubai-based Iranian financier Ali Ansari, following Tehran's resumption of attacks on international shipping in the Strait of Hormuz, the US Treasury Department announced.
The Treasury described Ansari as a key financier for Iran's Supreme Leader, Mojtaba Khamenei, accusing him of institutionalising large-scale embezzlement within the Iranian regime. The sanctions were announced by the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC).
Ansari accused of embezzlement and enriching regime elites
According to the Treasury Department, Ansari has built a sprawling global network of assets benefiting Khamenei and other regime elites. The statement said Ansari diverted publicly funded wealth into an extensive overseas portfolio of real estate and commercial holdings, enriching himself, senior figures in the Supreme Leader's Office, and the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).
"Ansari has effectively institutionalised large-scale embezzlement within the Iranian regime," the Treasury release stated. He amassed a global network of investment properties and financial holdings both on behalf of Khamenei and for his own self-serving interests, leveraging close ties to regime elites.
Treasury Secretary vows to preserve assets for Iranian people
US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent welcomed the sanctions, writing on X: "The so-called Supreme Leader is hiding in seclusion while his regime crumbles. The Treasury will continue using every tool at its disposal to isolate him and other regime elites from the global financial system. We will preserve these assets for the Iranian people."
The sanctions come after Iran resumed attacks on international shipping in the strategic Strait of Hormuz, a key chokepoint for global oil supplies. The US action aims to cut off financial flows to the Iranian leadership and the IRGC.
