US treasury secretary warns Washington will tighten Iran sanctions

Speaking in a news conference in Washington, DC, Yellen said: “From this weekend’s attack to the Houthi attacks in the Red Sea, Iran’s actions threaten the region’s stability and could cause economic spillovers.”

Her comments Tuesday come as global finance ministers and central bank governors gather in Washington for the International Monetary Fund and World Bank spring meetings.

Israel has also launched a “diplomatic offensive” against Iran, calling for sanctions against Tehran.

Foreign Minister Israel Katz said on Tuesday that he has contacted 32 countries calling on them to impose sanctions against Tehran. The move comes as Israel mulls a military response to Iran’s attack on Israel.

Iran announced its attacks on Saturday, using more than 300 drones, cruise missiles and ballistic missiles, were in retaliation for Israel’s strike on the Iranian consulate in Syria. That attack killed 13 people, including two commanders of the Quds Force of the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC).

“Alongside the military response to the firing of the missiles and the UAVs, I am leading a diplomatic offensive against Iran,” Katz wrote on X.

“This morning, I sent letters to 32 countries and spoke with dozens of foreign ministers and leading figures around the world, calling for sanctions to be imposed on the Iranian missile project and that the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps be declared a terrorist organisation”.