US targets Egyptian bank in fresh sanction on Iran as war hits six-month mark
Times of Israel · LC · trust 37/100
The United States on Friday issued fresh Iran-related sanctions as the war hit its six-month mark in a move that was rebuffed by Tehran as “state terrorism.”
Iran condemned the United States’ new economic sanctions and said other countries were legally obliged not to implement them. The Iranian foreign ministry’s statement came as mediators stepped up efforts to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, which handled 20% of world oil supplies before the war began and whose status remains the biggest obstacle to a peace deal.
US President Donald Trump’s administration on Monday warned countries to cut their business ties with Iran or face secondary sanctions as part of what it billed as an “economic D-Day,” though the Treasury Department stopped short of actually imposing penalties.
Trump reiterated on Thursday that the US was not talking with Iran, while the White House said Washington’s economic campaign would continue until Tehran decided to “come to the table in a meaningful way.”
Iran’s foreign ministry said in a statement on Friday that all countries were obligated under international law to refrain from implementing US sanctions against Tehran, adding that participation in them amounted to complicity in imposing one state’s unlawful will on independent states.
It branded the new US measures a “crime against humanity” that put the health and livelihood of millions of civilians at serious risk, and called on other nations and United Nations bodies to uphold the rule of law.
The Treasury Department is due to cut off a major Egyptian bank’s operations in the United Arab Emirates from the US financial system, an official confirmed Friday, as Washington pushes to choke Iran off economically.
The move impacts UAE branches of Egypt’s second-biggest bank, Banque Misr, blocking their banking access to US financial institutions.
US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent laid out plans this week for Iran’s “ economic asphyxiation .” The Treasury Department’s action will only take effect after a month-long public comment period.
In a statement first reported by the Financial Times, Bessent said Washington has “warned that Iran’s enablers cannot continue to enjoy access to the US dollar and the global financial system.”
“Banque Misr UAE decided to find out the hard way and, today, we are taking the first step in holding it accountable for its continued, egregious support of the Iranian regime,” he added.
Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani said he had stressed during talks with Iranian leaders in Tehran on Thursday the importance of returning to the pre-war status of open shipping through the Strait of Hormuz.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi on Friday described the talks with Al Thani as “creative,” and he renewed his appeal to the US to stop putting military and economic pressure on his country and to resume negotiations.
“Putting diplomacy back on track isn’t impossible. It hinges on US understanding of one simple fact: pressure doesn’t work,” Araghchi said on X.
Qatar, a US ally, and Pakistan helped broker a memorandum of understanding in June that led to a ceasefire, but that quickly unravelled due to disagreements between Iran and the US over the Strait of Hormuz.
After the US and Israel launched the war on February 28, Iran threatened to strike any vessel transiting the strait without its authorisation, driving down traffic and sending up the price of oil, providing Tehran with leverage in the bargain.
Had creative discussions with H.E. the PM/FM of Qatar.
Putting diplomacy back on track isn't impossible. It hinges on U.S. understanding of one simple fact: pressure doesn't work. The U.S. should build trust, speak respectfully, acknowledge our rights, and uphold commitments. pic.twitter.com/9yQ2pOXe5R
— Seyed Abbas Araghchi (@araghchi) August 28, 2026
The US insists that the strait remain an open international waterway. Mohsen Rezaei, secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, said on Thursday Iran was preparing a list of conditions for reopening the strait.
In the past, Iran’s conditions have included an end to the US blockade on Iranian ports, compensation and removal of sanctions. It remained unclear whether Iran intended to amend those demands in a way that might be acceptable to Washington.
Trump on Friday continued to insist the Strait was open, telling Axios “that sucker is open,” after US Central Command chief Brad Cooper said in a video statement that “internationally recognized sea routes in the strait are free of Iranian sea mines,” calling the achievement a “major milestone.”
Trump added, “The Iranian response is very mild. They don’t want us to go back at them. That’s the whole ball game. The rest doesn’t matter.”
Axios cited US officials as saying 20 to 30 tankers were moving through the strait every night — about half the amount that transited it pre-war.
An American official told the news outlet that Iran struck some 2 percent of the ships that went through the strait over the last month. However, the Islamic Republic continues to try to attack ships, almost always missing.
According to Reuters, preliminary shipping data shows seven commodity vessels transited the Strait of Hormuz on Thursday, down from 17 a day earlier and below a 10-day average of 15. However, it noted those figures could change, as some ships switch off transponders during the voyage.
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