Yellen: America will use sanctions to obstruct Iranian activity

US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said on Tuesday that the attack launched by Iran on Israel over the weekend threatens stability in the Middle East and may cause economic repercussions.

According to Reuters, Yellen began her prepared comments for a press conference by addressing what she described as the unprecedented attack on Israel by Iran and its proxies, saying that the Treasury Department would use its sanctions authority and work with allies “to continue to obstruct the Iranian regime’s malignant and destabilizing activity.”

The US Treasury Department said the United States is using financial sanctions to isolate Iran and disrupt its ability to fund proxy groups and support Russia’s war in Ukraine.

“From the weekend attack to the Houthi attacks in the Red Sea, Iran’s actions threaten the stability of the region and could cause economic repercussions,” Yellen said. She did not go into details.

Yellen spoke at a press conference during the meetings of the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank this week, which are attended in Washington by senior financial officials from around the world.

On Saturday, Iran launched more than 300 drones and missiles towards Israel in its first direct attack on Israel in response to an air strike suspected by Israel on the Iranian embassy compound in Damascus on April 1, which resulted in the killing of two Revolutionary Guard soldiers.

Yellen said Washington continues to use economic tools to pressure Hamas, but added that the Treasury Department stresses that its sanctions should not impede life-saving aid.

She called for urgent measures to end the suffering of Palestinians in the small strip, noting that all of Gaza’s population of more than two million people face acute food insecurity and that most of the population has become displaced.

“All of us here at these meetings must do everything we can to end this suffering,” she said.

Yellen indicated that Washington is also using sanctions to target violence committed by extremist settlers in the West Bank, while working to ensure an effective banking system there and supporting International Monetary Fund programs in Jordan and Egypt.