Reuters traced a web of more than 5,000 military agencies, all with names beginning with MOD, that have moved $2.1 billion in weaponry into Iran since January 2025. The network, built under the umbrella of the IRGC and bonyad conglomerates, has slipped past the U.S. naval blockade and Western sanctions by using front companies and non‑currency settlements.
The agencies, mostly created in 2013 when sanctions tightened, are linked to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and elite bonyads that control the nation’s oil revenue. Shipping data dating back to 2016 shows financial footprints tied to the same Tehran address of the defence ministry and a founding date of 1979, a veneer that masks their true purpose.
MOD 346428, the largest buyer, doubled its imports from $442 million in 2023 to $988 million in 2024, and brought in $2.3 billion worth of rocket propellants, explosives, and launch components between January 2025 and June 2026. Its shipments include 886 tonnes of sodium perchlorate from China, a key precursor for solid rocket fuel.
On 26 April 2025, a cargo of sodium perchlorate ignited at the Port of Shahid Rajaee, killing at least 70 people and injuring more than 1,200. State media said the chemicals were stored by Sina Port and Marine Services Development Co, a subsidiary of Bonyad Mostazafan, a foundation directly controlled by the supreme leader.
Even after the February 28 war, the network continued to import titanium from China, heavy‑duty Iveco trucks used as missile launchers, and modified Toyota pickups, all of which have been linked to the IRGC’s artillery and drone programmes. The flow of goods demonstrates the effectiveness of the smuggling scheme.
The U.S. Treasury is reportedly reviewing the agencies’ financial flows for potential sanctions enforcement, a move that could tighten the net around Iran’s clandestine military build‑up.