U.S. Department of State

12/18/2025 | Press release | Distributed by Public on 12/18/2025 10:00

Cracking Down on Iran’s Shadow Fleet

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Cracking Down on Iran's Shadow Fleet

Press Statement

Thomas "Tommy" Pigott, Principal Deputy Spokesperson

December 18, 2025

Today, the United States is acting to stem the flow of the Iranian regime's revenue used to support terrorism and other illicit activities.

The Department of the Treasury is sanctioning 29 shadow fleet vessels engaged in the covert delivery of hundreds of millions of dollars' worth of Iranian oil and petroleum products. Among the entities sanctioned is a network of companies and vessels operated by Hatem Elsaid Farid Ibrahim Sakr, an Egyptian businessman, and several companies active in countries including the UAE, India, the Marshall Islands, and Panama. This action further constrains Iran's ability to export petroleum and petroleum products through obscure and fraudulent mechanisms.

The United States will continue pursuing measures to implement National Security Presidential Memorandum 2, which directs the imposition of maximum pressure on the Iranian regime to deprive it of the revenues that fund its destabilizing activities. We will not hesitate to utilize all available tools at our disposal to counter those who enable Iran's illicit oil trade.

Today's action is being taken pursuant to Executive Order (E.O.) 13902, which target Iran's petroleum and petrochemical sectors. It continues the robust sanctions campaign to restrict Iranian oil sales in support of NSPM-2 issued by the President on February 4, 2025. For more information on today's action, please see the Department of the Treasury's press release.

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