The United States on Thursday imposed sanctions on several Iranian and Turkish companies and a number of aircraft in a move targeting four Iranian airlines, Reuters reported.
The companies targeted were linked to Mahan Air and Meraj Air, the Treasury Department said in a statement. It also said it was targeting a number of their aircraft, as well as aircraft from Caspian Airlines and Pouya Air.
The United States said the airlines had ferried weapons, fighters and money to proxies in Syria and Lebanon. Washington also threatened sanctions against those granting landing rights and providing services to the aircraft.
“The deceptive practices these airlines employ to illegally obtain services and U.S. goods is yet another example of the duplicitous ways in which the Iranian regime has operated,” U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said in a statement.
Washington also targeted three individuals, one from Turkey and two from Iran, who it said were linked to the airlines and aviation firms, according to Reuters.
The sanctions are the latest in a series of sanctions imposed by the U.S. in recent weeks, since it withdrew from the 2015 nuclear deal signed between Iran and world powers.
Earlier this week, the United States imposed sanctions on five Iranians with links to Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps.
Last week, the United States imposed sanctions on Iran’s central bank governor and an Iraq-based bank for “moving millions of dollars” for Iran’s elite Revolutionary Guard.
Before that, the Treasury imposed sanctions against six individuals and three companies it said were funneling millions of dollars to the Revolutionary Guard’s Quds Force.
