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US Sanctions Iranian LPG Smuggling Network, Shadow Fleet

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The US is imposing sanctions on a network of individuals, companies, and vessels accused of facilitating hundreds of millions of dollars in Iranian-origin liquefied petroleum gas shipments disguised as Omani cargo, the Treasury Department said on Friday.

The Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control said the network used front companies in the UAE and China, along with shadow-fleet vessels and offshore accounts, to move Iranian LPG to buyers in South and East Asia.

The Department sanctioned China-based Shanghai Qianye Energy, which it said is linked to Turkish national Mohammad Shakol Mihandoust, alongside Afghan national Sarbaz Abdul Zada, both accused of orchestrating shipments of Iranian LPG to Bangladesh and other regional markets.

The US also targeted Iran's shadow fleet of LPG tankers, including the LPG Sevan, Gas Zeina, Glendale, and Mile. The vessels, flagged across jurisdictions including Panama, Palau and St. Kitts and Nevis, are accused of transporting millions of barrels of Iranian-origin LPG.

The shipping network also used multiple Marshall Islands- and Liberia-linked management firms to mask ownership and operational control, the Department said in a statement.

The Treasury sanctioned Iran-based exchange house Mehrdad Geramian Nik, accusing it of moving hundreds of millions of dollars through offshore accounts on behalf of sanctioned Iranian banks including Bank Mellat, Bank Tejarat and Bank Pasargad.

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