Key Takeaways
- The US has seized Iranian crypto assets worth around $500 million as part of Operation Economic Fury.
- The US and Israel launched strikes on targets in Iran, causing damage and civilian casualties.
- Iran responded to the strikes with military attacks on Israeli territory and US military facilities.
Washington: US Secretary of the Treasury Scott Bessent said that Washington had grabbed Iranian crypto assets worth around $500 million.
“We were able to grab about $350 million of the crypto assets, and then on top of another $100 that we had recently gotten. So we’re almost at half a billion there,” Bessent told Fox Business.
On April 16, Secretary of War Pete Hegseth said that the US Treasury launched Operation “Economic Fury” against Iran to maximise economic pressure on the country.
On February 28, the US and Israel launched strikes on targets in Iran, including in Tehran, causing damage and civilian casualties. Iran responded by striking Israeli territory and US military facilities in the Middle East.
On April 11, Iran and the US held talks in Islamabad after President Donald Trump announced he had reached an agreement with Tehran on a two-week ceasefire. On April 12, the head of the US delegation, Vice President JD Vance, said Iran and the US had failed to reach an agreement during the negotiations. The US delegation returned home without a deal.
Trump then announced a blockade of all vessels entering and exiting Iranian ports on both sides of the Strait of Hormuz.
