US Sanctions Iran’s ‘Extortion Network’ Over Hormuz Tolls

The US imposed sanctions on two Iranian companies that charge for safe passage through the Strait of Hormuz, an attempt to loosen Tehran’s grip on the vital waterway as hostilities between the countries resume.

The Treasury Department on Wednesday announced new penalties on Persian Gulf Marine Insurance Company and HormuzSafe Marine Services Authority, which it said force commercial vessels to purchase mandatory maritime “insurance” to transit Hormuz.

The US, which has blockaded Iran’s ports as part of its effort to pressure Tehran into capitulation, also sanctioned eight companies operating “shadow fleet” vessels transporting Iranian oil.

US forces have repeatedly tried to pry the strait from the control of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. Iran effectively shuttered the waterway after the US and Israel launched a war on the Islamic Republic in late February, causing global energy prices to soar.

The status of the waterway has been at the center of the extended conflict between the US and Iran. Tehran has sought to cement its control of Hormuz, demanding vessels obtain its permission to transit and firing on those that do not.

“The United States will not allow Iran to hold global commerce hostage or use international shipping to finance the IRGC’s terrorism, aggression, and repression,” Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said in a statement.

The US has consistently argued that commercial shipping should enjoy unimpeded transit through Hormuz, warning that Iran has no right to levy tolls or charge for safe passage through one of the world’s most important international waterways.

“These new sanctions are the US government’s way of doubling down on the same message it has been sending to charterers and shipowners for months: pay Iran to for safe passage through the strait and you may be sanctioned,” said Claire O’Neill McCleskey, a former Treasury official and co-founder of sanctions advisory firm Clarity Compliance Consulting.

“Sanctions will make it difficult or impossible for freighters to pay tolls in the guise of insurance,” said Thomas Warrick, a former longtime DHS counterterrorism official. “Both Iran and USA are digging in for a longer Cold War.”

The sanctions come as the White House tries to pressure Iran to resume meaningful negotiations after a memorandum of understanding between the two nations unraveled earlier this month, triggering a fresh round of hostilities.

A brief days-long lull in the fighting ended on Tuesday when the two sides traded strikes. On Wednesday, Trump said the US would hit Iran hard after a recent attack that targeted a military base in Jordan.

“They’re going to get a beating,” he said in a phone interview with Fox News.

Photograph: Ships anchored in the Strait of Hormuz near Larak Island, Iran; photo credit: Majid Saeedi/Getty Images

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