India in Hit List for Shipping to
Iran
The Treasury
Department announced yesterday it is sanctioning six entities, one individual
and two tankers that are based or registered in Liberia, India, Vietnam,
Lebanon and Kuwait that have engaged in facilitating commodity shipments and
financial transactions for the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps-Qods Force,
the Houthis and Hizballah.
This action,
the sixth round of sanctions targeting the network of Iran-based,
IRGC-QF-backed Houthi financial facilitator Sa段d
al-Jamal since December 2023, represents yet another step in a concerted
campaign to disrupt IRGC-QF finances and its support to terrorist proxies such
as the Houthis, according to Treasury.
Treasury said
the Sa段d al-Jamal network uses a web of companies
and vessels to facilitate shipments of Iranian commodities through forged
shipping documents and other deceptive practices. Liberia-based Hassaleh International Company, the registered owner of the
Panama-flagged DAWN II worked with Sa段d al-Jamal and
his business partner Abdi Nasir Ali Mahamud to ship
Iranian commodities to the People痴 Republic of China.
The Sa段d al-Jamal network coordinated with India-based KNH
Shipping Private Limited, also known as KNH Global Private Limited, to procure
forged shipping documents to obfuscate the origin of the commodities onboard
the DAWN II. KNH Shipping Private Limited has provided extensive services to
the Sa段d al-Jamal network through the provision of
forged shipping documents and brokering and managing vessels for the network痴
use.
The Sa段d al-Jamal network has similarly used the Palau-flagged
ABYSS to ship Iranian commodities to the PRC. Like the DAWN II, the ABYSS
utilized forged shipping documents to disguise the Iranian origin of its cargo.
The ABYSS is owned by Vietnam-based Quoc Viet Marine Transport JSC and operated
by India-based Melody Shipmanagement Pvt Ltd.
All these
companies are being designated for having materially assisted, sponsored or
provided financial, material or technological support for, or goods or services
to or in support of, Sa段d al-Jamal.
The DAWN II
is being identified as property in which Hassaleh
International Company has an interest. The ABYSS is being identified as
property in which Quoc Viet Marine Transport JSC has an interest.
Two
Kuwait-based companies, Orchidia Regional for General
Trading and Contracting Company and Mass Com Group General Trading and
Contracting Company WLL, to transfer money for the purchase of goods supporting
Sa段d al-Jamal痴 network.