Skip to main content

US targets Iran-backed group in Bahrain with sanctions on affiliates

1 min

The United States on Tuesday imposed sanctions on four individuals in Iran for aiding the Bahrain-based, U.S.-designated terrorist group al-Ashtar Brigades, the Treasury Department said in a statement.

Manama City, Bahrain © Mena Today 

The United States on Tuesday imposed sanctions on four individuals in Iran for aiding the Bahrain-based, U.S.-designated terrorist group al-Ashtar Brigades, the Treasury Department said in a statement.

CONTEXT

The sanctions were imposed in coordination with Bahrain's government and allege that the targeted individuals "materially assisted, sponsored, or provided financial, material, or technological support for, or goods or services to or in support of" al-Ashtar Brigades.

KEY QUOTES

The U.S. action "underscores our collective commitment to disrupting Iran's destabilizing forces and threats, particularly those which threaten our partners in the region and around the world," Brian Nelson, U.S. under secretary of the Treasury for terrorism and financial intelligence, said in a statement.

WHY IT MATTERS

The United States has been taking action against Iran-backed groups in the Middle East to reduce Tehran's influence in the region and to isolate its affiliates. It designated al-Ashtar Brigades a foreign terrorist organization in 2018.

In recent weeks, Washington and Tehran have also been at odds over the conflict in Gaza and its implications in the region with Iran-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen disrupting commercial shipping in the Red Sea and the U.S. carrying out strikes against them.

Reporting by Kanishka Singh and Paul Grant in Washington and Ismail Shakil in Ottawa

Related

Subscribe to our newsletter

Mena banner 4

To make this website run properly and to improve your experience, we use cookies. For more detailed information, please check our Cookie Policy.

  • Necessary cookies enable core functionality. The website cannot function properly without these cookies, and can only be disabled by changing your browser preferences.