The U.S. Treasury Department has announced a major expansion of its economic campaign against Tehran, blacklisting 36 entities as part of an effort to ground Iranian commercial aviation. The newly announced sanctions target 27 Iranian commercial airlines alongside several logistics and cargo firms based in Turkiye, Kazakhstan, and Malaysia. The measures are part of the Trump administration’s "Operation Economic Outcast," which is now entering its seventh month of conflict with Iran.
According to federal officials, the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) designated the 27 Iranian airlines for operating directly within the aviation sector of Iran's economy. Alongside these domestic carriers, the U.S. targeted foreign companies accused of acting as general sales agents or logistics coordinators for Mahan Air, a privately owned Iranian airline that has been under U.S. sanctions since 2011. Mahan Air was originally designated for providing financial, material, and technological support to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps-Qods Force (IRGC-QF), with the U.S. alleging the carrier secretly transported IRGC operatives, weapons, and funds.
Among the newly sanctioned foreign entities are two Turkiye-based companies, S Sistem Lojistik Hizmetler Anonim Sirketi and Mes Cargo Transportation Tourism and Foreign Trade Limited Company, which are accused of coordinating shipments and serving as general sales agents for Mahan Air. Additionally, Malaysia-based Icargo SDN BHD and Kazakhstan-based Tour Invest LLC were designated for acting as general sales agents for the airline.
The action follows a late August announcement by Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent of an "economic D-Day." At the time, Bessent stated: "In the Second World War, D-Day marked the historic beginning of a campaign with our allies to target and drive the enemy from its positions, including those in third countries. Today, in that same spirit, we are launching an economic onslaught against Iran’s financial connections around the globe. Our objective is to sever every economic lifeline that sustains this tyrannical regime until Tehran stands alone."
This latest round of sanctions comes amid severely depressed shipping traffic in the Strait of Hormuz, a critical maritime chokepoint. Following U.S. and Israeli military strikes on Iran, commodity vessel traffic has plummeted from an average of over 100 ships per day in 2025. On September 8, only six commodity vessels passed through the strait, down from nine the previous day and well below the recent 10-day average of approximately 12 vessels.
The Treasury Department has previously targeted third-party networks assisting Mahan Air. In 2020, OFAC sanctioned two United Arab Emirates-based companies, Parthia Cargo and Delta Parts Supply FZC, for providing material support that helped Mahan Air maintain its fleet of Western-manufactured aircraft. U.S. authorities alleged that Mahan Air used these aircraft to transport terrorists and lethal cargo to Syria, as well as Iranian technicians and technical equipment to Venezuela.
You have reached the limit of 2 free articles this month.
