target Iran
On January 20, 2023, a stop sign is visible at a security entrance of the U.S. Treasury building in Washington, D.C. Kevin Lamarque Reuters
Reuters, June 2, Washington The United States said on Friday that it has sanctioned the Iranian technology company Arvan Cloud, two of its employees, and a related Emirati business for assisting Tehran in its efforts to stifle domestic demonstrations by assisting Tehran in censoring the internet in Iran.
The U.S. Treasury Department claimed in a statement that Arvan Cloud has a strong contact with Iran’s intelligence agencies and that its CEOs are connected to high-ranking Iranian government officials.
According to the report, “the… government has frequently used Internet restrictions and the slowing of Internet speeds to suppress dissent, monitor, and punish Iranians for exercising their right to free expression and assembly both online and offline.”
Mahsa Amini, a Kurdish Iranian lady, died in morality police detention in September after being charged with breaching Iran’s stringent dress code. This tragedy sparked months of widespread protests and represented one of the most audacious challenges to Iran’s religious leaders in recent memory.
Arvan Cloud has officially committed to offer interception for the government, according to the Treasury, and played a significant part in Iran’s construction of the “NIN infrastructure,” a restricted version of the internet under government control.
This enables the Iranian government to regulate and filter inbound and outbound communications as well as to monitor data, it continued.
In the announcement, Treasury Under Secretary for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence Brian Nelson stated, “The United States is committed to holding accountable those who seek to undermine freedom of expression and suppress dissent.”
Pouya Pirhosseinloo and Farhad Fatemi, the co-founders of Arvan Cloud, were named as sanctions targets by the Treasury. The United Arab Emirates-based ArvanCloud Global Technologies LLC, an affiliate, was also the subject of the penalties, it said.
The penalties have the effect of freezing all assets belonging to individuals and businesses under American jurisdiction. Additionally, engaging in certain transactions with them may result in “secondary sanctions” under which the US may punish non-US people and businesses.
