U.S. Blocks Crypto Wallets Linked to Russian Exchange and Yemeni Group

• The U.S. Treasury has imposed sanctions on eight crypto wallets linked to Russia’s Garantex exchange and the Houthi movement after a blockchain analysis showed that almost $1 billion was used for suspicious transactions.
• The Houthis have been using these crypto wallets to fund attacks on the military and civilian vessels in the Red Sea, which has caused regional instability.

The U.S. Treasury recently imposed sanctions on eight crypto wallets that were  linked to Russia’s Garantex and Yemen’s Houthi group. 

Officials took this step after doing a thorough analysis on the blockchain, and it showed that nearly $1 billion has been used for suspicious transactions that are also connected to funding military activities. These actions carried out by the U.S. Treasury are part of the ongoing efforts to shake up any financial network that supports the Houthi operations in Yemen and the Red Sea region. 

The officials were able to get significant help from two major blockchain analysis platforms, Chainalysis and TRM Labs, who helped uncover this network. The U.S. Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) highlighted two addresses that were linked to major crypto platforms and six others that were privately controlled. 

Allegedly, the Houthis have been using these crypto funds and wallets to support military activities that brought about attacks on civilian and military ships in the region. Slava Demchuk, an expert in the field, pointed out that this situation shows the growing role cryptocurrency plays in financing geopolitical conflicts and terrorism. This action reflects the increasing scrutiny of crypto in international security matters.

The Houthi Movement’s Growing Threat and U.S. Response

The Houthi movement, also called Ansar Allah, is a Yemeni political and military group that came from the Zaidi Shia community. Initially they were focused on religious and social change; however, within a short period, they became a powerful force in Yemen’s internal conflict. Recently, they have made headlines for launching missile and drone attacks on both military and civilian ships in the Red Sea, threatening the stability of the region and maritime commerce. 

The U.S. government has labeled them a foreign terrorist organization, saying their actions are risks to American civilians, military personnel in the Middle East, and regional allies. The violence of the  Houthis, which included deadly strikes, has led to a U.S. bombing campaign against them.

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