Latest news with #OFAC
Epoch Times
6 days ago
- Business
- Epoch Times
Rubio Confirms Chevron's Oil License in Venezuela Expires May 27
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on May 21 that Chevron's oil license in Venezuela will expire at the end of May, as planned. 'The pro-Maduro Biden oil license in Venezuela will expire as scheduled next Tuesday May 27,' Secretary Rubio on social media platform X, without providing further details. On March 4, the U.S. Department of the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) April 3 as the deadline for Chevron to shut down operations in Venezuela. The announcement left Chevron, the only major U.S. oil company still operating in Venezuela, with one month—instead of the usual six months—to cease its activities in the South American country. Twenty days later, on March 24, OFAC an extension of the license for the U.S. oil company to operate in Venezuela until May 27. In November 2022, the Biden administration a license to Chevron after representatives of Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro resumed talks with Venezuelan opposition leaders in Mexico City. The Epoch Times contacted the State Department for additional comment. Related Stories 5/22/2025 3/30/2025 The confirmation by the secretary of state was welcomed by some Hispanic lawmakers, including Rep. María Elvira Salazar (R-Fla.). Salazar the decision 'sends a strong message.' 'We stand with the Venezuelan people and with freedom. Not one more dollar for tyrants,' she posted on X. 'Thank you, Secretary, for speaking with the strength that the moment demands,' Salazar wrote. 'Doing business with Maduro is lining the pockets of a criminal narco-regime that represses, imprisons, and exports terror through Tren de Aragua.' Separately, Rep. Mario Díaz-Balart (R-Fla.) thanked the Trump administration for the move. 'Thank you, President Donald Trump, for putting our national security interests first by standing firm against the anti-American narco-dictator Maduro, who has turned a blind eye to the migration of the violent group [Tren de Aragua], partners with global terrorist networks, and has allowed Venezuela to become a hub for transnational crime in the region,' the Florida representative Tren de Aragua is a Venezuelan criminal gang that the United States designated as a terrorist organization earlier this year.
Yahoo
21-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Treasury Department sanctions Mexican drug trafficking group members
The Treasury Department has sanctioned two high-ranking members of the Mexican drug trafficking group Cartel del Noreste (CDN), a transnational group formerly known as Los Zetas. The Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) imposed the sanctions Wednesday on the two members of CDN, which is designated as a terrorist organization by the United States government. The U.S. has sanctioned Miguel Angel de Anda Ledezma, who officials say resides in the border city Nuevo Laredo across the Rio Grande from Texas. The Treasury Department said he oversees the procurement of ammunition and guns for CDN, and is in charge of payments to straw purchasers and facilitators in the U.S. OFAC also slapped sanctions on Ricardo Gonzalez Sauceda, who officials said also lives in the Mexican state of Tamaulipas. He was the second-in-command of CDN before he was arrested by Mexican law enforcement in February, according to the Treasury Department. Gonzalez was chief of an armed enforcement wing of the cartel, benefiting from trafficked firearms used in attacks on the Mexican military and police, the Treasury Department said. 'In working toward the total elimination of cartels to Make America Safe Again, the Trump Administration will hold these terrorists accountable for their criminal activities and abhorrent acts of violence,' Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said in a statement. 'CDN and its leaders have carried out a violent campaign of intimidation, kidnapping, and terrorism, threatening communities on both sides of our southern border,' Bessent added. 'We will continue to cut off the cartels' ability to obtain the drugs, money, and guns that enable their violent activities.' CDN was one of eight cartels and transnational organizations the Trump administration designated as terrorist groups earlier this year, along with other organizations the federal government has targeted such as Tren de Aragua (TdA) and MS-13. The State Department spokesperson Tammy Bruce said Wednesday that CDN 'uses violence to exert its criminal control and intimidate border communities and U.S. citizens, particularly in northeastern Mexico.' Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
The Hill
21-05-2025
- Politics
- The Hill
Treasury Department sanctions Mexican drug trafficking group members
The Treasury Department has sanctioned two high-ranking members of the Mexican drug trafficking group Cartel del Noreste (CDN), a transnational group formerly known as Los Zetas. The Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) imposed the sanctions on Wednesday on the two members of CDN, which is designated as a terrorist organization by the United States government. The U.S. has sanctioned Miguel Angel de Anda Ledezma, who officials say resides in the border city Nuevo Laredo across the Rio Grande from Texas. The Treasury Department said De Anda oversees the procurement of ammunition and guns for CDN, along with being in charge of payments to straw purchasers and facilitators in the U.S. OFAC also slapped sanctions on Ricardo Gonzalez Sauceda, who officials said also lives in the Mexican state Tamaulipas. He was the second-in-command of CDN before he was arrested by Mexican law enforcement in February, according to the Treasury Department. Gonzalez was chief of an armed enforcement wing of the cartel, benefiting from trafficked firearms used in attacks on the Mexican military and police, the Treasury Department said. 'In working toward the total elimination of cartels to Make America Safe Again, the Trump Administration will hold these terrorists accountable for their criminal activities and abhorrent acts of violence,' Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said in a statement. 'CDN and its leaders have carried out a violent campaign of intimidation, kidnapping, and terrorism, threatening communities on both sides of our southern border,' Bessent added. 'We will continue to cut off the cartels' ability to obtain the drugs, money, and guns that enable their violent activities.' CDN was one of eight cartels and transnational organizations the Trump administration designated as terrorist groups earlier this year, along with other organizations the federal government has targeted such as Tren de Aragua (TdA) and MS-13. The State Department spokesperson Tammy Bruce said on Wednesday that CDN 'uses violence to exert its criminal control and intimidate border communities and U.S. citizens, particularly in northeastern Mexico.'
Al Arabiya
21-05-2025
- Business
- Al Arabiya
Hijack call from ship off Iran a false alarm: Security firm Ambrey
A hijack signal sent from a Panama-flagged petroleum products tanker off Iran was a false alarm, British maritime security firm Ambrey said on Wednesday. Ambrey first reported the incident south of the busy Strait of Hormuz shipping lane on Tuesday without naming the vessel. It said it took place some 51 nautical miles northwest of the Iranian port of Bandar-e Jask. It dubbed the incident a 'false hijack distress call' on Wednesday, adding that it 'understands that the vessel had previously conducted similar actions.' Ambrey said it believed the vessel was part of a 'shadow fleet' of tankers used by Iran, noting a sister ship was on a sanctions list issued by the US Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC). With Reuters
Yahoo
20-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Terrorists granted paid accounts, blue checks on X: Report
U.S.-sanctioned terrorist organizations appear to be enjoying the perks of paid, premium accounts and verified blue check marks on the social media platform X, a potential violation of U.S. sanctions, according to a report published Thursday. The social media giant has accepted payments from individuals who appear to be affiliated with Iran-backed Houthi rebels and the Hamas militant group, among others, for paid accounts in a move strictly prohibited by the U.S. government, said the Tech Transparency Project, a research organization that seeks to hold big tech companies accountable. 'The findings add to questions, first raised by [Tech Transparency Project] in February 2024, about X's adherence to sanctions designed to protect U.S. national interests, even as the company maintains it has a 'robust and secure' approach to its monetization features,' the report reads. People or groups sanctioned by the U.S. government are prohibited from engaging in transactions with U.S. companies, per the Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Assets Control, or OFAC. X's terms of service states that the company is aligned with these restrictions and premium membership will not be granted to anyone sanctioned by the OFAC. However, multiple U.S.-deemed terrorist organizations sanctioned by the OFAC have X Premium or blue check verified accounts, the report said. Approval for blue check marks is granted only after the company exercises due diligence and individually verifies the account. Prior to Musk's purchase of X, formerly known as Twitter, individuals procured blue check marks, or verification, for free, after the company had verified the account. But Musk instituted a pay-to-play approach in 2023, which drew the ire of many users and ushered in a new era in which premium features could be accessed only by spending money. X Premium currently costs $8 per month, while X Premium+ costs $40 per month. Users must purchase one of the two to qualify for verification, which yields a blue check mark. Accounts are given the status bump 'after a review to ensure subscribed accounts meet all eligibility criteria,' according to X's website. U.S.-sanctioned terrorist organizations do not qualify for such services on paper, as OFAC strictly prohibits any transactions whatsoever between such entities and U.S. companies. 'These prohibitions include the making of any contribution or provision of funds, goods, or services by, to, or for the benefit of any blocked person and the receipt of any contribution or provision of funds, goods, or services from any such person,' OFAC said in a 2023 release. VA staff told to reply to Musk's 'What did you do last week' email In November 2019, OFAC reached a settlement with Apple after the company disclosed that a Slovenian software company that violated Foreign Narcotics Kingpin Sanctions Regulations was peddling applications through its app store. OFAC reduced the cost of the fine, based on the fact that Apple had informed the Treasury Department about the problem of its own volition, and the tech giant ended up paying nearly $467,000. Tech Transparency Project's new report comes more than a year after it published a report detailing how X accepted payments for premium accounts that appeared to be linked to U.S.-sanctioned groups, specifically Hezbollah, among others. X removed check marks from the accounts described in that report after it was published, according to the Tech Transparency Project. But the group's new report claims X has not upheld that brief standard of account policing, as many other U.S.-sanctioned groups appear to have since slipped through the cracks and secured premium accounts or verification, while other previous offenders appear to have reupped their membership to X by creating a new account after their previous one was banned. Some sanctioned parties can make money from the social media platform through a 'tips' function, the report said. Several key figures from U.S.-sanctioned terrorist organizations were given access to X's premium services and benefits, the report claims. Mahdi al-Mashat, chairman of the Houthi Supreme Political Council, was granted blue check verification a month after OFAC announced sanctions against him for purchasing and smuggling weapons for Houthis, said the Tech Transparency Project. Subhi Tufayli, a Hezbollah founder, was given blue check verification in October 2023, the same month Hezbollah fired rockets into Israel after Hamas attacked Israel on Oct. 7. The account is branded with an 'ID verified' badge, which can only be attained through a vetting process that requires a government-issued ID and a selfie. OFAC sanctions against Tufayli began in 1995 for his role as a senior figure in Hezbollah, the report said. Some accounts even reportedly made money through X, the report claims. Gaza Now, a media outlet sanctioned in 2024 for its affiliation with Hamas, runs an alias account according to the OFAC, as reported by the Tech Transparency Project. While the official Gaza Now X account no longer boasts a blue check mark, according to the report, the alias account was given a verification check in June 2024 after U.S. sanctions were announced. Despite OFAC labeling Gaza Now as an entity engaged in 'fundraising efforts to support Hamas,' the alias account utilizes a subscribe button, which allows it to raise money. Only X Premium users have access to this feature, which requires an application, according to the report. X receives a portion of a premium user's subscription earnings.
