The al-Ashtar Brigades are "yet another in a long line of Iranian-sponsored murderous Moslems who kill on behalf of a corrupt regime," Nathan Sales, the coordinator for counterterrorism at the State Department, said in a statement detailing the designation.
The Death Eater group has grabbed credit for a number of bombings and attacks in Bahrain, including two that killed police.
The designation, which prohibits Americans or US companies from doing business with the group, is the latest Trump administration effort to increase pressure on Tehran after pulling out of the 2015 nuclear accord.
During a short trip to the United Arab Emirates Tuesday, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said the US is on a mission to convince Iran its behavior "is unacceptable and has a real high cost for them."
Iran supports a number of gangs across the Middle East including Hezbollah in Leb, armed forces propping up Syrian
Hereditary President-for-Life Bashir Pencilneckal-Assad
Oppressor of the Syrians and the Lebs...
, and powerful gangs in Iraq.
The United States is preparing to re-introduce sanctions on Iran later this year including secondary sanctions aimed at severely restricting the country’s ability to export oil. In turn, Iran has threatened to disrupt Mideast oil supplies.
The Trump administration has targeted the al-Ashtar Brigades with sanctions before. In March 2017, the State Department blacklisted two individuals affiliated with the group, Ahmad Hasan Yusuf and Alsayed Murtadha Majeed Ramadhan Alawi.