Vessel used in trades that funded Houthi arms hit by U.S. and U.K. sanctions

As Houthi attacks on merchant ships continue with a seemingly abundant supply of Iranian weaponry, sanctions announced today by the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), in coordination with the United Kingdom, shed some light on how those Houthi arms are being funded.

Designated in the sanctions are Hong Kong ship operator Cap Tees Shipping Co. and the 1998-built, 15,084 dwt crude oil tanker Artura, which is said to have been involved in another saga of illicit ship-to-ship transfers and fake vessel names.

Also named by OFAC today is the Deputy Commander of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps-Qods Force (IRGC-QF), Mohammad Reza Falahzadeh, a Houthi group member.

OFAC says that the IRGC-QF has provided the Houthis with an increasingly sophisticated arsenal of weapons and the training to deploy these weapons against commercial shipping and civilian infrastructure in the region. Iranian military officials have also provided intelligence support to target vessels transiting the region, providing key support to enable the Houthis’ maritime attacks against international shipping. Since mid-November 2023, the Houthis have attempted dozens of strikes targeting vessels in the region.

OFAC says that the IRGC-QF and the Houthis engage in the sale of Iranian commodities to foreign buyers to generate revenue to fund Houthi arms and operations. Much of this activity is directed through the network of Iran-based, IRGC-QF-backed Houthi financial facilitator Sa’id al-Jamal, whom OFAC designated on June 10, 2021 for his support to the IRGC-QF.

According to OFAC, Artura (IMO: 9150365), which is owned and operated by Cap Tees Shipping Co. Limited, has transported Iranian commodities for the network of Sa’id al-Jamal. The Artura is said to have conducted ship-to-ship transfers to receive Iranian commodities before transferring the commodities to the Mehle, a tanker sanctioned on January 12, 2024 for its role selling Iranian commodities for Sa’id al-Jamal. The Artura, says OFAC, has obfuscated its identity by using the name of a different vessel, Sanan II, to complete some of its shipments.

Cap Tees Shipping Co., Limited is being designated pursuant to E.O. 13224, as amended, for having materially assisted, sponsored, or provided financial, material, or technological support for, or goods or services to or in support of, Sa’id al-Jamal. The Artura is being identified as property in which Cap Tees Shipping Co., Limited. has an interest.

More on today’s OFAC actions HERE

Read the U.K. Government’s statements on its coordinated sanctions HERE