The U.S. designated “20 individuals and entities that violate Iraqi sovereignty and exploit Iraq’s economy to funnel money to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Quds Force (IRGC-QF)”. The U.S. diplomatic spokesperson contended that “some of these people help provide the financial support that enables the IRGC-QF to transfer lethal aid to Iranian-backed terrorist groups such as Kataeb Hizbollah (KH) and Asaeb Ahl al-Haq (AAH) and engage in other malign activities that undermine the Iraqi government’s efforts toward energy independence”. She added that “among today’s designations include entities and individuals that exploit for the benefit of the IRGC-QF Iraq’s dependence on Iranian electricity imports. Under a U.S.-issued sanctions waiver, Iraq is permitted to engage in financial transactions related to the import of electricity from Iran. The purpose of this waiver, which the U.S. is renewing today, is to meet the immediate energy needs of the Iraqi people”. The duration of the waiver was reportedly 30 days.