The United States has once again taken decisive action against Iran’s nefarious network of proxy forces, designating several individuals and entities that facilitate weapons procurement and funding for the Houthi rebels in Yemen and the Iran-backed militia Harakat Ansar Allah al-Awfiya in Iraq.
The U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) has targeted key actors who have enabled the Houthis to generate revenue and acquire materials to manufacture advanced weaponry used in ongoing terrorist attacks against commercial ships.
Since November 2023, the Houthis have deployed unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), ballistic missiles, and cruise missiles to attack merchant vessels and their crews in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden, killing innocent civilians and threatening global freedom of navigation.
Simultaneously, the U.S. State Department has designated Harakat Ansar Allah al-Awfiya, an Iran-backed group operating in Iraq, as a Specially Designated Global Terrorist organization, along with its 46-year-old secretary general, Muzhir Ma’lak al-Sa’idi.
This group is part of the Islamic Resistance in Iraq, which has claimed responsibility for several recent attacks from Iraq and Syria targeting U.S. military personnel, including a January drone strike that killed three U.S. service members in Jordan.
The Iranian regime’s unwavering support for these sanctioned entities, which serve as its proxy forces, poses a grave threat to regional stability and global security.
By facilitating the flow of military-grade materials and funds to these groups, Iran enables their destabilizing terrorist activities and emboldens their attacks against civilian targets and U.S. interests.
As the conflict between Israel and Hamas, another Iran-backed militia, rages in the Palestinian enclave of Gaza, the United States remains committed to using all available tools to counter Iran’s support for terrorism and degrade the ability of Iran-backed groups to conduct terrorist attacks.
The designations and sanctions imposed by the U.S. government aim to disrupt the financial networks and supply chains that fuel these proxy forces, denying them access to the U.S. financial system and cutting off their sources of revenue and weapons procurement.
While the United States has stated it is not seeking to escalate the conflict, it has responded to the threats posed by these groups, retaliating with airstrikes against targets in Baghdad after the killing of three U.S. soldiers.
The Iranian regime’s continued embrace of terrorist proxies and its relentless pursuit of destabilizing activities in the region underscore the urgency of a united international effort to counter its malign influence and hold it accountable for its actions.
Source » iranintl