WASHINGTON (AP) — The United States on Monday imposed sanctions on Iraqi airline Fly Baghdad and its CEO, for allegedly providing aid to Iran’s military wing, and imposed a fifth round of sanctions on the Hamas militant group over its misuse of cryptocurrencies since the Oct. 7 attack on Israel.
The sanctions come as Israel’s bombing campaign in the Gaza Strip continues — killing 25,000 Palestinians so far, according to the Gaza Strip’s Health Ministry — and Iranian-backed militias in Iraq launch regular strikes against bases housing US forces in Iraq and Syria.
In the new sanctions, the Treasury Department said that Fly Baghdad and its CEO, Bashir Abdul Kadhim Alwan Al-Shaibani, provided assistance to the Iranian military wing and its proxy groups in Iraq, Syria, and Lebanon.
Treasury Undersecretary Brian E. Nelson in a statement: “Iran and its proxies have sought to abuse regional economies and use seemingly legitimate companies as cover to finance and facilitate their attacks.” He added that the United States will continue to obstruct Iran’s illegal activities aimed at undermining the stability of the region.
The sanctions block access to US property and bank accounts and prevent targeted people and companies from doing business with Americans.
Fly Baghdad denied the American accusations, and said that it would take legal measures to demand compensation for losses resulting from the sanctions, “as it is clear that the decision was based on misleading and false information and cannot stand before the law.”
The Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control also designated three leaders and supporters of the Iran-allied militia in Iraq, Kataib Hezbollah, as well as a company it says moves money and launders money for the organization.
Since the outbreak of war between Israel and Hamas, an umbrella group of Iranian-backed militias in Iraq, calling themselves the Islamic Resistance in Iraq, has launched strikes against bases housing US forces in Iraq and Syria. The group said that the strikes come in response to Washington’s support for Israel in the Gaza war and that they aim to expel American forces from Iraq.
Most of the strikes failed or were shot down and did not cause casualties, but on Saturday a missile was fired at Al-Asad Air Base in western Iraq, wounding several American personnel and an Iraqi military service member stationed there.
Some Iranian-backed Iraqi militias, including Kataib Hezbollah, officially operate under the control of the Iraqi army as part of a coalition known as the Popular Mobilization Forces, which was a major player in the fight against the extremist group ISIS when it swept across Iraq and Syria, seizing large swaths of territory. . But in practice, these groups operate largely outside state control.
Additionally, the United States on Monday imposed sanctions on a network of Hamas-affiliated money changers in Gaza, including financial facilitators who transferred money through cryptocurrencies from Iran to Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad in Gaza.
The United Kingdom and Australia coordinated with the United States regarding these sanctions.
Hamas said it was planning for a potentially long battle and was “ready to do whatever is necessary for the dignity and freedom of our people.”
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Associated Press writer Abby Sewell reported from Beirut, Lebanon.