Iranian Elite Profit From Oil Sanctions through Exclusive Brokers
Iran's oil industry has become a lucrative financial channel for those linked to its security institutions due to international sanctions, according to an Iranian investigative journalist.
Yashar Soltani alleges that the Ministry of Petroleum has lost control over marketing and exporting Iran's national oil industry, with four brokers now handling sales.
The brokers have a strong financial incentive to disrupt political agreements between Tehran and Washington, as lifting sanctions would shut down their networks, according to Soltani.
Over the past three months, Mohammad Javad Bavand, a former economic deputy at the intelligence organisation of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, has granted four brokers rights to sell 80m barrels of oil, Soltani claims.