The United States on Wednesday imposed sanctions on the son of Syria's President Bashar Al Assad for "enriching the Syrian regime through construction of luxury real estate."

The Treasury Department said in a statement said Hafez Al Assad, the eldest son of the Syrian leader, was placed under sanctions to stop him from facilitating his father's activities in the conflict-dogged Middle Eastern country.

"While corrupt businessmen with ties to Assad invest in luxury real estate made possible by forced displacement of innocent civilians, they also worsen the oppression of the Syrian people," said Secretary Steven T. Mnuchin.

The Treasury Department's said Syria's corrupt businessmen underwrite the regime's exploitative schemes and shamefully profit from its atrocities.

Also placed under sanction is Wassim Anwar Al Qattan, a prominent businessman whose companies run malls and real estate projects in Damascus, the Syrian capital.

The sanctions mean that all property and interests in property of these persons that are in or come within the United States or in the possession or control of U.S. persons must be blocked and reported to the Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC).

OFAC's regulations generally prohibit all dealings by U.S. persons or within (or transiting) the United States that involve any property or interests in property of designated persons. Non-U.S. persons that engage with the sanctioned persons may also risk sanctions.