Looming over the announcement Friday is the attack Israel is expected to launch on Iran at any time in retaliation for a ballistic-missile barrage that struck but caused limited damage to Israeli targets on Oct 1. The US has pressed Israel not to target Iran’s energy sector or nuclear sites for fear of escalation and of global economic fallout.
The US broadened the scope of its sanctions on Iran’s oil and gas sectors in response to a ballistic-missile attack on Israel, ramping up economic pressure on Tehran ahead of Israeli retaliation that’s expected any day.
Under the action announced Friday, the Treasury Department invoked a Trump administration-era executive order that allowed for sanctions on any area of the Iranian economy to deny it funding to finance malign activity. Friday’s move essentially declares the country’s petroleum and petrochemical sector off-limits, allowing for sanctions on anyone linked to it.
