The U.N. Security Council this week added two Yemen-related designations to its sanctions list. The designations target Mansur al-Sa’adi, a Houthi commander in Yemen's Naval and Coastal Defense Forces, and Motlaq Amer al-Marrani, former deputy head of the Houthi National Security Bureau.

The Office of Foreign Assets Control amended and reissued the Western Balkans Stabilization Regulations and Central African Republic Sanctions Regulations to include more guidance, definitions, general licenses and “other regulatory provisions that will provide further guidance to the public,” OFAC said in a pair of notices this week. Effective Sept. 29, the new regulations replace the previous Western Balkans regulations published in 2011 and the CAR regulations published in “abbreviated form” in 2014.

The Office of Foreign Assets Control on Sept. 27 released quarterly reports on certain licensing activities for Iran and Sudan, covering the period from April 2019 through September 2021. The reports provide licensing statistics for exports of agricultural goods, medicine and medical devices to both countries as required by the Trade Sanctions Reform and Export Enhancement Act of 2000.

The Office of Foreign Assets Control this week sanctioned Diana Kajmakovic, a state prosecutor in Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH), for corruption and undermining democratic processes in the Western Balkans. OFAC said Kajmakovic is a “brazenly corrupt BiH state prosecutor with links to criminal organizations.”

The Office of Foreign Assets Control published in the Federal Register a group of previously issued general licenses. One notice covers two general licenses issued under the Iranian Transactions and Sanctions Regulations and the Global Terrorism Sanctions Regulations, and the other notice covers three general licenses issued under the Iranian Transactions and Sanctions program. The full text of each license appears in the respective notice.

People subject to U.S. jurisdiction can send remittances to Cuba through digital payments in certain situations, the Office of Foreign Assets Control said in a new frequently asked question this week. OFAC said remittances involving digital payments -- including money transfers through credit cards and digital bank accounts -- are permissible if the transaction is authorized under the Cuban Assets Control Regulations and if the digital payment service provider is a “U.S.-registered money transmitter or other qualifying banking institution.”

Although U.S. human rights sanctions against China (see 2204010039) may be imposing some financial consequences, they aren’t convincing Beijing to stop committing abuses, Chris Chivvis, a former State Department sanctions official, said during a webinar last week hosted by the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. He said the U.S. may need to take a different tack with China if it wants to achieve its policy goals. Chivvis directs Carnegie's American Statecraft Program.

The Office of Foreign Assets Control sanctioned Iran’s Morality Police for abuse and violence against Iranian women peacefully protesting, according to a Sept. 22 news release. OFAC also targeted seven "senior leaders" of Iran’s security organizations: the Morality Police, Ministry of Intelligence and Security, the Iranian army, the Basij Resistance Forces and Law Enforcement Forces. OFAC said the sanctioned officials "oversee organizations that routinely employ violence" to suppress various groups within Iran.

The Treasury Department is seeking public comments as it works to address illicit finance and national security risks related to digital assets. The request -- which came after President Joe Biden ordered various agencies to study and assess illegal uses of cryptocurrencies and other digital assets (see 2203090067 and 2207130009) -- seeks feedback on “any matter that commenters believe is relevant to Treasury’s ongoing efforts to assess the illicit finance risks associated with digital assets as well as the ongoing efforts to mitigate the risks.” The agency specifically asked whether any areas are related to “sanctions obligations with respect to digital assets that require additional clarity” and whether Treasury can improve its current sanctions guidance for digital assets. The agency also asked for information on the types of “technological solutions” being used by companies in the digital asset sector to improve their sanctions compliance. Comments are due on or before Nov. 3.

The Office of Foreign Assets Control this week issued a reminder to industry to file annual reports on blocked property by Sept. 30 (see 2207010054). The notice applies to blocked property held as of June 30.