The designations were done pursuant to Executive Order 13392 that blocks the property of persons and their networks involved in proliferation activities.  IRISL, Iran’s national maritime carrier company, was first added to a sanctions watch list by the United States in September 2008.  Individuals and entities listed are prohibited from accessing the U.S. financial and commercial systems.

A U.S. person – meaning any U.S. citizen, permanent resident alien, U.S. company (including their foreign branches) and any person or company in the United States –  is prohibited from engaging in any transaction or dealing with any party designated under EO 13382.

For more information on the recent set of designations, please read the following U.S. Government notice:  Treasury Exposes Efforts by Iran to Avoid Sanctions on Shipping.