UANI Applauds Booking.com for Suspending Accounts Linked to Sanctioned Iranian Oligarch Ali Ansari, Urges Hilton to Cut Ties

(New York, N.Y.)—United Against Nuclear Iran (UANI) today applauded Booking.com for suspending and removing from its platform a number of luxury hotel properties linked to Ali Ansari, a UK-sanctioned Iranian banker accused of financing hostile activity by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), a U.S.-designated foreign terrorist organization. Ansari’s portfolio also reportedly has ties to the son of the Iranian regime’s supreme leader, Mojtaba Khamenei, who is under U.S. sanctions.

Booking.com has suspended accounts and cancelled hundreds of reservations associated with several high-end European hotels, including two Hilton properties in Frankfurt, the Steigenberger Golf and Spa Resort in Mallorca, and other assets tied to Ansari through a complex web of offshore companies. The action followed revelations that Ansari controls a vast European real estate portfolio despite being sanctioned by the UK for supporting the Iranian regime’s malign activities.

Ansari was designated by the UK government after Ayandeh Bank’s collapse, with authorities citing his role as a “corrupt Iranian banker and businessman” who funded hostile operations by the IRGC. His assets in the UK, including a London property portfolio valued at more than £150 million, were subsequently frozen. UANI CEO Ambassador Mark D. Wallace stated:

“Booking.com’s decision sends a clear and powerful message that Western companies cannot and should not provide commercial platforms for individuals who bankroll the Iranian regime and its security apparatus. This is exactly the kind of responsible corporate action needed to prevent sanctioned Iranian elites from laundering their reputations and profits through luxury assets in Europe and beyond. UANI urges other travel, hospitality, and financial services companies to follow Booking.com’s lead and conduct rigorous due diligence to ensure they are not facilitating sanctioned actors or regime-linked profiteers.”

UANI has long warned that Iranian oligarchs with close ties to the regime continue to exploit gaps in enforcement and transparency to acquire prestigious Western assets, even as international sanctions seek to isolate Tehran’s leadership and its supporters.

Wallace added:

“We also call on Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. to conduct an immediate review of its relationship with Ansari and to sever any remaining ties to sanctioned Iranian regime–linked individuals. Global hotel brands must ensure their names are not being used to legitimize or enrich figures who support the Iranian regime’s corruption and repression. Hilton should act swiftly and transparently to cut any remaining connections to Ali Ansari.”