Israel sanctions 18 oil tankers allegedly used by Iran’s Quds Force to finance Hamas, Hezbollah

In a rare move, Defense Minister Yoav Gallant has imposed sanctions on 18 oil tankers that Israel says are used by Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps’ Quds Force to finance the Hezbollah and Hamas terror groups.

“As part of the economic campaign led by the defense establishment against the terrorist organizations, among them Quds Force, Hezbollah and Hamas, the defense minister has imposed sanctions on 18 tankers involved in transporting oil belonging to the designated terrorist organization Quds Force, the sale proceeds of which are used to finance and strengthen the terrorist organizations, among them also Hezbollah and Hamas,” the Defense Ministry’s National Bureau for Counter Terror Financing (NBCTF) says in a statement.

“The oil originates in the Iranian regime’s allocations to Quds Force, which transports the oil in tankers under a legitimate facade, in an effort to circumvent international sanctions in the context of terror financing, using methods that constitute a violation of maritime safety and environmental laws, in order to sell the oil to a wide range of countries,” the statement says.

NBCTF says the sanctions “expose a key financing axis of the Quds Force terrorist organization and its proxies” and are “another layer in the efforts of the Israeli defense establishment to broaden the damage and disruption to the terror financing axes of Iran and Quds Force, as part of the broad campaign against the terrorist organizations, among them also Hezbollah and Hamas.”

It is unclear how much of an effect Israel’s sanctions will have on Iran’s alleged scheme.