U.S. Imposes Sanctions on Nigerian Company Over Alleged Facilitation for IRGC

 The U.S. Department of the Treasury has imposed sanctions on the Nigerian company Vanguard Tactical Supply over allegations that it acted as an intermediary in the procurement of drone components for Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), the department announced in a press release.

"Iranian national Behrouz Namazi is the CEO of Nika Jet — a Tehran-based enterprise providing production, distribution, and maintenance services for aviation components and UAVs. Namazi has made attempts to arrange arms purchases on behalf of the IRGC. The Nigeria-based company Vanguard Tactical Supply serves as an intermediary in Namazi's activities," the statement read.

The sanctions against the company include the seizure of U.S.-based assets, the freezing of organization-related accounts in American banks, as well as restrictions against all individuals facilitating sanctions evasion.

At the end of June, the U.S. imposed sanctions on Rwanda's Gasabo Gold Refinery and its management, which, according to Washington, were involved in the illicit export of gold from the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) to Rwanda in coordination with the March 23 Movement (M23) armed group.