27 October,2023 07:31 PM IST | Washington | mid-day online correspondent
Joe Biden
The United States has recently announced a series of fresh sanctions targeting individuals and entities connected to Hamas, a known terrorist organization. These sanctions come in response to the October 7 attacks on Israel carried out by Hamas, stated a report by ANI. The US Treasury Department has shared details of these measures, which include targeting Hamas-linked officials, financial networks, and Iran-based organizations involved in funding the terrorist group.
Key points from the sanctions:
1. The sanctions aim to disrupt Hamas's financial operations and hinder its ability to evade international sanctions. They also address an individual, Khaled Qaddoumi, a Jordanian national, who acts as the Hamas representative in Iran and maintains strong ties with the Iranian government.
2. The US is also taking action against members of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and a Gaza-based entity that has been used as a conduit for funnelling illicit Iranian funds to Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ).
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3. The Turkish-based company, Trend GYO, which was previously designated in May 2022 as part of Hamas's investment portfolio, is also sanctioned. It is considered a significant component of Hamas's global assets, previously estimated to be worth over $500 million.
As a result of these sanctions, all assets and interests in the United States that belong to the designated individuals and entities are blocked, and they must be reported to the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC). Additionally, any entities that are 50% or more owned, directly or indirectly, by one or more blocked persons are also subject to these sanctions.
The US Treasury Department has emphasized its commitment to dismantling Hamas's financial networks and preventing the group from exploiting the international financial system for its operations, stated the report. The measures are part of the ongoing effort to degrade Hamas's ability to carry out terrorist attacks by targeting its financial activities and sources of funding.
The Treasury Department maintains provisions to allow the flow of legitimate humanitarian assistance to vulnerable populations while continuing to deny resources to malicious actors. These provisions include authorizations for specific humanitarian transactions in support of the activities of non-governmental organisations.
