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Regulatory Watch News

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  Economic Fury Targets Iraqi Oil Official, Iran-Backed Terrorist Militias in Iraq

  OFAC

  May 7, 2026

  WASHINGTON—Today, the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) increased economic pressure on Iran and its proxy militias in Iraq by designating individuals and businesses exploiting Iraq’s oil sector and undermining the country’s security.  This action includes Ali Maarij Al-Bahadly,Iraq’s Deputy Minister of Oil, who abuses his position to facilitate the diversion of oil to be sold for the benefit of the Iranian regime and its proxy militias in Iraq.  OFAC is also designating three senior leaders of Iran-aligned terrorist militias Kata’ib Sayyid Al-Shuhada and Asa’ib Ahl Al-Haq.  The United States will continue to hold these groups and other Iran-aligned terrorist militias in Iraq, such as Kata’ib Hizballah, accountable for their attacks against U.S. personnel and civilians, diplomatic facilities, and businesses across Iraq, which the groups conduct without regard for Iraq’s sovereignty or democratic process.

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  “Cash & Crime” Podcast: Money Mules – Money Laundering as a Side Job

  FMA

  May 7, 2026

  The latest episode of the Austrian Financial Market Authority (FMA) podcast “Reden wir über Geld” (“Let’s talk about money”) on the special topic of “Cash & Crime” focuses on money laundering through fraudulent cryptotrading platforms. Hosts Patricia Floh-Weninger and Bibiane Kaufmann use two realistic cases to explain how people can be drawn into complex fraudulent schemes, without investing themselves. The episode focuses on “money mules”, people who transfer money or crypto-assets via their own accounts or wallets, and who aid criminal networks by doing so. This often happens due to ignorance or carelessness.

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  Croatia: 21 suspects arrested in probe into suspected corruption and fraud involving agricultural funds

  European Public Prosecutor's Office

  May 7, 2026

  (Luxembourg, 7 May 2026) – The European Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO) in Zagreb (Croatia) has initiated an investigation against 21 Croatian citizens, including one public official and a former public official, who were arrested yesterday in a probe into possible corruption and subsidy fraud involving subsidies from the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development (EAFRD) and the European Agricultural Guarantee Fund (EAGF). The arrests have been conducted in the wake of 30 searches involving 150 police officers, carried out on 6 May 2026 in cooperation with the Sisak-Moslavina Police Department [Policijska uprava sisačko-moslavčka] and the Independent Sector for Financial Investigations at the Ministry of Finance’s Tax Administration [Ministarstvo financija, Porezna uprava, Samostalni sektor za financijske istrage].