The European Union is considering new sanctions against about 40 Iranian individuals and entities, according to draft documents seen by POLITICO.
Additional sanctions are being discussed as part of the EU’s ongoing response to Iran’s deadly crackdown on protesters following the death last September of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini, who died after being detained by the country’s morality police. She later died in custody. The outburst of anger is seen as one of the strongest challenges to Iran’s rule since the 1979 Islamic Revolution.
There are a total of 27 EU documents seen by POLITICO, which are called “evidence packs” because they contain information — mostly press reports — supporting the proposed sanctions.
According to the documents, there are 17 people the EU is looking to ban. These include the regional governor, a parliamentarian, a minister and a top official of the Republic of Iran Broadcasting (IRIB) World Service. The penalties will also target current and former officers in the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), which has played a key role in government repression.
According to According to Oslo-based NGO Iran Human Rights, Iranian government forces have killed at least 481 people in recent months, including 64 children and 35 women.
Also included in the list is the Iranian sports minister, Seyed Hamid Sajjadi Hazweh, who the document says is “responsible for silencing Iranian athletes, preventing them from speaking out internationally against repression in Iran.”
This links the minister to the treatment of Elnaz Recabi, which has received considerable media attention, “He was personally involved in the case of climber Elnaz Recabi, an Iranian athlete who competed without a hijab at the Asian Championship Rock Climbing event in the fall of 2022.”
In December, the document notes, “it became clear that Elnaz Recabi’s family home in Zanjan has reportedly been demolished.”
The 20 entities on the list include Iran’s Communications Regulation Authority (CRA), which “enforces the Iranian government’s requirements to filter Internet content through spyware called SIAM”, and Ravin Academy, a body that has trained hackers Trained to have been “directly involved in intercepting” the communications of those protesting against the Iranian regime.
Twelve regional corps of the IRGC are also involved.
EU countries – led by Germany, France and the Netherlands – are separately discussing whether to move forward on the IRGC and designating it a “terrorist organisation”. German Foreign Minister Annalena Bierbock Tweeted In support Monday, the move was “politically important and makes sense.” France did too kept The door opened for thought.
America has already designated IRGC as a terrorist group and the UK is set soon to follow suit. Earlier this year, Iran tried to back the US move, making it a condition for reviving the 2015 nuclear deal between Tehran and several Western powers.
The new EU sanctions are expected to be finalized shortly before they go to EU ambassadors for discussion. EU foreign ministers are aiming to sign off on the package at a meeting later this month.