US sanctions 3 companies in Lebanon and Turkey for 'funding Iran, Hezbollah'
The U.S. has slapped sanctions on three companies and one person in Lebanon and Turkey, accusing them of funneling funds to Iran's Revolutionary Guard and Hezbollah.
The U.S. Treasury announced sanctions on Turkish company Mira Ihracat Ithalat Petrol (Mira), which it said "purchases, transports, and sells Iranian commodities on the global market;" on its chief executive, Ibrahim Talal al-Uwayr; and on Lebanon-based Yara Offshore SAL and Hydro Company for Drilling Equipment Rental, both of which it said have sold large quantities of Iranian goods to Syria.
The sanctioned companies "generated hundreds of millions of dollars' worth of revenue from selling Iranian commodities, including to the Syrian government," the U.S. Treasury said in a statement.
The move comes as the region is waiting for Washington's response to a strike, likely launched by one of the region's Iranian-back militias, that killed three U.S. troops Sunday at a base in Jordan near the Syrian border.