The Office of Foreign Assets Control published a previously issued general license under its Russian Harmful Foreign Activities Sanctions Regulations. The full text of the license is available in the notice.

President Joe Biden on Sept. 5 nominated Erik Woodhouse to lead the State Department's Office of Sanctions Coordination. Woodhouse currently serves as the deputy assistant secretary for counter threat finance and sanctions in the State Department's Bureau of Economic and Business Affairs, where he oversees the Office of Sanctions Policy and Implementation. The Senate in 2022 confirmed James O’Brien to lead the sanctions coordination office, which had gone without a leader since President Donald Trump disbanded it in 2017 (see 2204150049). The White House declined to comment about whether O'Brien is still leading the office and directed all questions to the State Department. A State Department spokesperson didn't immediately comment.

The Office of Foreign Assets Control has sanctioned Abdelrahim Hamdan Dagalo, a leader with the Rapid Support Forces in South Sudan, for his involvement in a militia group that has committed human rights abuses in the country. OFAC earlier this year sanctioned people and companies connected to the country’s ongoing military conflict between the RSF and the Sudanese Armed Forces (see 2306010064). Since the conflict started in April, OFAC said both sides have “failed to implement a ceasefire” and “have been credibly accused of extensive human rights abuses in Darfur and elsewhere.”

The Office of Foreign Assets Control this week removed a yacht from its Specially Designated National List that was sanctioned in 2019 for belonging to Saleh Assi, who was accused of money laundering and aiding a Hezbollah financier. The Malta-flagged Flying Dragon was removed from the SDN List because it no longer belongs to Assi, an OFAC spokesperson said Sept. 1.

The Office of Foreign Assets Control this week published four previously issued general licenses under its Chinese Military-Industrial Complex Sanctions Regulations. The text of each license is available in the Federal Register notice.

The U.K. revised the entry for Dana Holdings on its Belarus sanctions list, the Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation announced last week. The change revised identifying information for the company, which operates in the Belarusian construction sector.

The Office of Foreign Assets Control this week sanctioned two people and one entity involved in helping North Korea’s weapons and missiles program earn revenue. The designations target Jon Jin Yong and Sergey Mikhaylovich Kozlov, who coordinated work for North Korean construction workers in Russia and procured items used in the ship-building industry. OFAC also sanctioned Intellekt, a company that Yong used in a Moscow-based construction project, for being owned or controlled by Kozlov.

The Office of Foreign Assets Control this week launched the second episode in its “Introduction to OFAC” series, which is meant to provide guidance and an overview of the agency’s sanctions programs and requirements (see 2307280070). The new video provides an introduction to blocking and non-blocking sanctions.

A sanctioned Chinese supplier of centrifuges to Iran has ties to Chinese military end-users, defense firms and universities, including some that aren’t subject to U.S. trade restrictions, compliance risk advisory firm Kharon said Aug. 24. Kharon said Zhejiang Qingji Ind. Co.’s previously unreported connections highlight the foreign influence risks faced by universities, including in the U.S.

The State Department this week sanctioned 11 people and two entities for their involvement in forcibly transferring and deporting Ukrainian children from Russia-occupied territories to Russia.