US sanctions 29 vessels allegedly linked to Iranian oil

The US on Thursday said it had imposed sanctions on 29 vessels in Iran's so-called "shadow fleet," claiming that they export Iranian petroleum and petroleum products through "deceptive shipping practices."

In a statement, the US Department of the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) said the vessels and their management firms were allegedly transporting hundreds of millions of dollars' worth of Iranian oil and petroleum products.

The statement identified Egyptian businessman Hatem Elsaid Farid Ibrahim Sakr and several companies operating in the UAE, India, Panama, and the Marshall Islands as being linked to the shipments.

"Treasury will continue to deprive the regime of the petroleum revenue it uses to fund its military and weapons programs," the statement quoted Treasury Under Secretary for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence John K. Hurley as saying.

"This action further constrains Iran's ability to export petroleum and petroleum products through obscure and fraudulent mechanisms," the State Department said in a separate statement.