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State Department spokesperson highlights FTO designations and sanctions as tools against gangs, Iran
Summary
Tammy Bruce, spokesperson for the US Department of State, said the department uses foreign terrorist organization designations for transnational gangs and sanctions on Iran to limit financing for militant groups, describing those actions as core tools to protect Americans.
Tammy Bruce, spokesperson for the US Department of State, said the department uses foreign terrorist organization designations and sanctions as tools to make it harder for transnational gangs and state sponsors of terrorism to fund and carry out malign activity.
"As an example, the designation of TDA and MS 13 as foreign terrorist organizations, these are transnational gangs, but designating them as FTOs allows us and other elements of the government to take more actions against them to make what they do even harder and, of course, stop it entirely," Bruce said.
Bruce also cited sanctions on Iran, which she called "the largest state sponsor of terrorism in the world." She said sanctions are intended to reduce the money Iran can provide to armed groups, naming Hamas, Hezbollah and the Houthis as examples. "Sanctions against that nation help us make sure they don't get the money to fund entities like Hamas and Hezbollah and the Houthis, so it makes their malign activities less possible, less expansive," she said.
The remarks framed both FTO designations and economic sanctions as elements of the department's broader mission. "When you think of the State Department, the big takeaway is that making Americans safer, more secure, more prosperous is an element that we work on every day for your families, your friends, and for your future," Bruce said.
The transcript records these statements as concise remarks; no formal policy changes, actions, or implementation steps were announced in the excerpt.
