The United States has announced it will sanction 13 European companies it suspects of being controlled by the Iranian government. Nine of the firms are German-based.

The US Treasury Department froze all assets the companies have under US jurisdiction and forbid American companies or individuals from doing business with them.

Nine of the firms are registered in Germany, two in Belarus, and one each in Luxembourg and Italy.

The companies include insurance, investment, mining and engineering firms. Seven of the German firms, including IFIC Holding and Ascotec Holding, are based in the western city of Düsseldorf. The others are located in Hamburg and Nettetal.

At a press briefing in Washington on Tuesday, Stuart Levey, photo above, the Treasury's undersecretary for terrorism and financial intelligence, described Iran as "by far the most prolific funder of terrorism in the world."

"Today's identifications will mitigate the risk that such entities pose to legitimate transactions," Levey said.

Meanwhile, Treasury said it had targeted four senior officers in the Qods force, an elite arm of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, for assisting militant groups designated by the United States as terrorist organizations, including Hezbollah, which also is a key player in the Lebanese government.

Two of the officers, Hushang Allahdad and Mohammad Reza Zahedi, play key roles in Iran's support of Hezbollah, and two others, Gen. Hossein Musavi and Col. Hasan Mortezavi, provided "financial and material support" to the Taliban, Treasury said.

Agencies/Deutsche Welle