Esfandar Momeni, Iran's Interior Minister [EPA Yonhap News]

On January 30 (local time), the U.S. Donald Trump administration imposed sanctions on a large number of Iranian officials, including Esfandar Momeni, Iran's Interior Minister, who were responsible for suppressing and killing anti-government protesters in Iran.

The U.S. Department of the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) announced this in a press release, noting that Minister Momeni oversees the Law Enforcement Force (LEF), a key organization responsible for the deaths of thousands of people who were peacefully protesting.

OFAC further explained, "Momeni is responsible for the organization of domestic security agencies and supervises the LEF, which has led to mass killings, arrests, and forced disappearances."

In addition to Minister Momeni, sanctions were also imposed on Majid Kademi, head of intelligence for the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), Iran's elite military force; Gholam Mohammad Balizadeh, commander of the Seyyed al-Shohada Corps of the IRGC in Tehran Province; Hossein Zareh Kamali, commander of the IRGC in Hamadan Province; Hamid Damghani, commander of the IRGC in Gilan Province; and Mehdi Hajian, commander of the LEF in Kermanshah Province.

OFAC also added Babak Mortaza Zanjani to the sanctions list, calling him a "criminal investor."

Regarding Zanjani, the statement said, "He embezzled billions of dollars in Iranian oil revenues, to which the Iranian people were rightfully entitled, and these have never been fully recovered. Released from prison to launder money for the Iranian regime, Zanjani has provided financial support for major projects that more broadly support the IRGC and the regime."

OFAC also sanctioned two digital asset exchanges linked to Zanjani, marking the first time digital asset exchanges operating in the financial sector of the Iranian economy have been sanctioned.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessant stated, "The Iranian regime has chosen to squander the nation's remaining oil revenues on nuclear weapons development, missiles, and terrorist proxies around the world, rather than on prosperity. The Treasury Department will continue to target the Iranian networks accumulating wealth at the expense of the Iranian people, and corrupt elites."