The US Treasury Department on Thursday unveiled a fresh round of sanctions targeting a sophisticated oil smuggling operation and a Hezbollah-linked financial firm, intensifying efforts to choke off Iran’s revenue streams that fuel “destabilising activities.”

“Treasury will continue to target Tehran’s revenue sources and intensify economic pressure to disrupt the regime’s access to the financial resources that fuel its destabilising activities,” Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said in a statement announcing the measures.

At the heart of the crackdown is a network allegedly controlled by Iraqi-British national Salim Ahmed Said, which has been buying and shipping billions of dollars’ worth of Iranian oil disguised as Iraqi since at least 2020. The Treasury said the group operated a chain of companies that moved crude oil across borders, sidestepping international sanctions.

A separate set of sanctions also targeted a financial institution tied to Hezbollah, the Iran-backed militant group designated as a terrorist organisation by the US.

Iranian oil exports have been under severe restrictions due to Iran’s nuclear ambitions and its support for proxy groups across the Middle East.

According to a 2023 Reuters investigation, a fuel-oil smuggling network flourishing in Iraq since 2022 generates at least $1 billion a year for Iran and its proxies — funds the US now seeks to freeze.

Thursday’s sanctions came after the US carried out strikes on June 22 on three Iranian nuclear sites including its most deeply buried enrichment plant, Fordow. The Pentagon said on Wednesday the strikes had degraded Iran’s nuclear program by up to two years, despite a far more cautious initial assessment that had leaked to the public.

The US and Iran are expected to hold indirect talks in Oslo next week to discuss Iran’s nuclear programme — though tensions over oil smuggling, sanctions, and recent military actions could overshadow the dialogue.

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With inputs from Reuters