Trump Iran Pressure, Reapplying Sanctions and Financial Restrictions

President Donald Trump signed an executive order Tuesday reinstating the “maximum pressure” policy on Iran, a strategy he previously implemented during his first term. This executive order is part of a broader foreign policy initiative that includes withdrawing the United States from several United Nations agencies, including the Human Rights Council and UNESCO. The policy primarily involves financial pressure, with the Department of the Treasury tasked with enforcing sweeping sanctions to cut off funding to the Iranian regime.

Iran remains the world’s leading state sponsor of terrorism, financially supporting and controlling a network of jihadist groups, including Hamas, Hezbollah, Iraqi Shiite militias, and Yemen’s Houthi terrorists. In 2018, a State Department study estimated that Iran spends up to $1 billion annually on terrorist activities. Then-Ambassador-at-Large Nathan Sales reported that Iran spends $700 million per year on Hezbollah and another $100 million on various Palestinian terrorist groups, including Hamas.

During Trump’s first term, his administration imposed significant sanctions on Iran, limiting its ability to exert influence in the Middle East. He also designated the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) as a foreign terrorist organization and ordered the 2020 airstrike that eliminated IRGC Quds Force chief Qasem Soleimani. Soleimani had been a key coordinator among Iranian-backed terror groups, and his death disrupted Iran’s regional operations.

Iran responded by prosecuting Trump and former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo in absentia, demanding $50 billion in compensation for Soleimani’s killing—a ruling the defendants have entirely ignored. Iranian figures have also called for Trump’s assassination, with threats intensifying after Soleimani’s funeral.

While signing the executive order, Trump directly addressed these threats, warning Iran of severe consequences should they attempt to assassinate him. “If they did that, they would be obliterated. That would be the end,” he told reporters. He referenced prior warnings to Iran, including statements made in 2018 and during a 2020 interview with Rush Limbaugh, emphasizing that any hostile actions would be met with unprecedented retaliation.

Between Trump’s two terms, U.S. policy toward Iran shifted dramatically under President Joe Biden. His administration pursued a diplomatic approach, removing the Houthi rebels from the U.S. list of foreign terrorist organizations, unfreezing $6 billion in Iranian assets, and lifting sanctions on certain Iranian officials. These actions were intended to encourage moderation but coincided with escalated terrorist activity by Iranian proxies.

On October 7, 2023, Hamas—one of Iran’s key terrorist allies—launched the deadliest terror attack in Israel’s modern history. Militants invaded from Gaza, killing civilians, engaging in torture, and committing other atrocities. Iran publicly celebrated the attacks, with mass gatherings and fireworks displays in Tehran.

Trump’s reinstated “maximum pressure” policy seeks to reassert financial and strategic constraints on Iran, aiming to curb its ability to fund global terrorism and exert influence in the Middle East. The executive order signals a return to an aggressive stance against the Iranian regime and its proxies.

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