US Slaps Expanded Sanctions on Iran Amid Ongoing Conflict
US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent announced new sanctions on Iran, targeting 60 individuals, entities, and vessels. However, he stopped short of imposing penalties that would cut off Iran's economic lifeline, allowing countries to continue trading with Tehran.
Bessent said the US wants to give countries time to sever ties with Iran, warning that those who resist will risk being forced out of the dollar-based financial system.
Iranian officials vowed to retaliate against the expanded sanctions, saying they are fully prepared for the measures. Brig-Gen Hossein Mohebbi, a spokesperson for Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, threatened heavy blows to US vital interests and energy chokepoints if Iran's infrastructure is threatened.
The US and Israel have been waging a war against Iran for almost six months, with thousands of people killed, mostly in Iran and Lebanon. Despite the economic pain inflicted on Iran, its leadership remains defiant, and experts say the country has preserved enough missile and drone capability to attack Gulf neighbors and threaten oil tankers in the Strait of Hormuz.
The US is seeking new ways to end Iranian attacks on ships in the Gulf and more recently via its allies in the Red Sea. The exact state of Iran's nuclear program, which the Americans and Israelis aim to wipe out, remains unknown.