Skip to content
Subscriber Only
economics

U.S. Sanctions Iran Businesses, Alleging Ties to Child Soldiers

By
Updated on
A woman walks past a political wall mural outside the former U.S. embassy in Tehran, Iran, on Aug. 5, 2018. 

A woman walks past a political wall mural outside the former U.S. embassy in Tehran, Iran, on Aug. 5, 2018. 

 Photographer: Ali Mohammadi/Bloomberg

The U.S. Treasury Department imposed financial sanctions Tuesday against the Middle East’s largest steel producer and largest tractor manufacturer, alleging they provide financial support to an Iranian paramilitary group and are complicit in the recruitment of children as soldiers.

Iran Tractor Manufacturing Co., identified as the largest tractor company in the Middle East and North Africa, and Mobarakeh Steel Company, identified as the largest steelmaker in the region, were among 22 corporations and banks the Treasury described as a network providing support to the Basij Resistance Force. The Treasury Department cited the paramilitary group’s ties to Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.