- Category
- Latest news
US Slams Iran With Biggest Sanctions Since 2018—Targeting Oil Shipping Empire
- Authors
![Photo of Dariia Mykhailenko]( "Photo of Dariia Mykhailenko")
The United States has announced the imposition of more than 115 new sanctions targeting an expansive shipping network controlled by the son of a senior advisor to Iran’s Supreme Leader. According to the US Department of the Treasury on July 30, this marks the most sweeping sanctions package against Iran since 2018.
The measures include sanctions against over 50 individuals and entities, as well as the identification of more than 50 vessels tied to what officials describe as a “vast shipping empire” run by Mohammad Hossein Shamkhani (Hossein).
“The Shamkhani family’s shipping empire highlights how the Iranian regime elites leverage their positions to accrue massive wealth and fund the regime’s dangerous behavior,” stated US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent.
According to the Department, Hossein’s network plays a central role in the export of Iranian crude oil, generating significant revenue for both his family and the regime.
Ali Shamkhani, the father of Mohammad Hossein Shamkhani and himself sanctioned by the United States in 2020, currently serves as the top political advisor to Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei. Leveraging his powerful position within the Iranian regime, Shamkhani has enabled the growth of a vast, corruption-fueled network.
With his backing, the family has built and now oversees a far-reaching fleet of tankers and container ships that transport oil, petroleum products, and other cargo from Iran and Russia to global buyers—generating tens of billions of dollars in profits.
“The over 115 sanctions issued today are the largest to-date since the Trump Administration implemented our campaign of maximum pressure on Iran. These actions put America first by targeting regime elites that profit while Tehran threatens the safety of the United States,” Bessent concluded.
Simultaneously, the US State Department designated 20 organizations and 10 vessels as blocked property under Executive Orders 13846 and 13902 for their involvement in the trade and transportation of Iranian oil and petrochemical products.
In addition, Mohammad Hossein Shamkhani’s (Hossein) network operates an extensive fleet of vessels, ship management companies, and front entities—some posing as legitimate financial service providers—used to launder billions in proceeds from the international sale of Iranian and Russian crude oil and petroleum products, largely to customers in China.
To mask its activities and distance itself from connections to the Shamkhani family, Iran, and Russia, the network relies on sophisticated concealment tactics. Hossein himself conducts operations exclusively under aliases, including “H,” “Hector,” and “Hugo Hayek”—the name featured on his Dominica passport, the statement reads.
The fleet, composed of both oil tankers and containerships, regularly rotates its operators and management companies to obscure ultimate ownership and complicate efforts to trace accountability back to the Shamkhani family. On occasion, these vessels have been given preferential access over others when loading or unloading in Iranian ports.
Earlier, Republican Senator Lindsey Graham addressed recent claims from the Kremlin that Russia has developed “immunity” to Western sanctions.
In response, Graham stated that former President Donald Trump is formulating new measures that could substantially reshape the international approach to Russia’s wartime economy.
