Mohammad Hossein Shamkhani is a major player in Iran's petroleum industry, or what's left of it. He runs a company based in Dubai, the Milavous Group, which has been accused of making billions in revenues by the illegal sale of Iranian crude oil. He has also been accused of moving weapons to Russia across the Caspian Sea. He has already been the target of American financial sanctions in 2025, and now he's being hit with another round.
On Tuesday, in an official press release, the United States Treasury Department announced and described the latest round of sanctions against Shamkhani and his business enterprises.
Today, the Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) is intensifying its efforts to disrupt and degrade the illicit shipping and sanctions evasion network of Mohammad Hossein Shamkhani (Shamkhani). This action is part of Treasury’s ongoing efforts to ramp up economic pressure on the Iranian regime after it resumed destabilizing attacks in the Strait of Hormuz. The Shamkhani network remains a major force behind Iran’s oil exports and has expanded into global containerized shipping and commodities trading.
“The Iranian regime survives on deception, and the Shamkhani network is one of its most profitable engines,” said Secretary of the Treasury Scott Bessent. “Treasury is shutting down the financial infrastructure that allows the regime to continue its threats to U.S. national security and global shipping.”
Today’s action includes more than 50 individuals, entities, and vessels that enable Shamkhani and the Iranian regime to continue profiting while the Iranian people remain burdened under the economic yoke imposed by their government. Today’s action builds on OFAC’s April 2026 and July 2025 designation actions targeting the Shamkhani network, and Treasury has now sanctioned more than 200 individuals, entities, and vessels operating under Shamkhani’s patronage.
The press release contains a list of all the schemers and scammers that make up Shamkhani's network, and it's quite a list. This goblin plays a large part in bringing in what business Iran has managed to do in the last few years; his operations are a major source of income for the mullahs and their country for a while now; now the United States is slamming the door on his trade, at least in large part.
Read More: Trump Changes Course on Hormuz 'Reimbursement Fees' After Gulf Leaders Come Up With Better Idea
Here's how the sanctions work:
As a result of today’s action, all property and interests in property of the designated or blocked persons described above that are in the United States or in the possession or control of U.S. persons are blocked and must be reported to OFAC. In addition, any entities that are owned, directly or indirectly, individually or in the aggregate, or 50 percent or more by one or more blocked persons are also blocked. Unless authorized by OFAC, or exempt, OFAC’s regulations generally prohibit all transactions by U.S. persons or within (or transiting) the United States that involve any property or interests in property of designated or otherwise blocked persons.
The Trump administration continues to turn the screws on Iran. Their civil leadership is supposedly down to the third tier, and it's a safe bet that surviving members of the ruling class are scurrying around the countryside like a pack of hydrophobic rats. The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) is still making defiant noises, but they don't have much besides hot air to threaten America with. The so-called Supreme Leader hasn't been seen since the whole fracas started, and it's anybody's guess if he's above or below ground.
Now, the Islamic Republic's checking account is being hit with a major overdraft.
This seems appropriate.
Editor's Note: For decades, former presidents have been all talk and no action. Now, Donald Trump is eliminating the threat from Iran once and for all.
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