Fatemeh Bahrami/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images
A view of Iranian newspapers with headlines about the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini, who died in Tehran, Iran on September 18, 2022, after being arrested by morality police for allegedly failing to adhere to the strict dress code.
CNN –
The Biden administration on Friday imposed sanctions on more than two dozen Iranian individuals and entities involved in the violent suppression of protests following the death of Mahsa Amini a year ago.
The new sanctions are the latest response to Tehran’s brutal crackdown on protesters who took to the streets after Amini’s death in the custody of Iran’s so-called moral police. The 22-year-old was allegedly arrested by the moral police – against whom the US imposed sanctions last year – for unlawfully wearing her hijab.
According to a press release from the US Treasury Department, Friday’s sanctions target “18 key members of the regime’s security forces, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and law enforcement agencies (LEF); the head of the Iranian Prison Organization; three individuals and one company in connection with the regime’s systematic censorship and blocking of access to the Internet; and three IRGC and regime-controlled media channels – Fars News, Tasnim News and Press TV – and three senior officials.”
The US sanctions were imposed in coordination with partners such as the United Kingdom, Canada and Australia, the Treasury Department said.
In a separate statement, Secretary of State Antony Blinken announced that the U.S. State Department was “imposing visa restrictions on 13 Iranian officials and other individuals for their involvement in detaining or killing peaceful protesters or restricting their civil liberties.” expression or gathering.”
“Since the death of Mahsa Amini and the protests that followed, we have imposed visa restrictions on 40 Iranian officials and others because of their involvement in these acts targeting peaceful protesters,” the top US diplomat said.
President Joe Biden said in a statement Friday that he and first lady Jill “join people around the world in thinking of them – and of every brave Iranian citizen killed, wounded or imprisoned by the Iranian regime for peaceful democracy.” and demanded their basic human dignity.” .”
“As we saw last year, Mahsa’s story did not end with her brutal death. “She inspired a historic movement – Women, Life, Freedom – that has impacted Iran and influenced people around the world who work tirelessly for gender equality and respect for their human rights,” Biden said.
“In the face of ongoing oppression and violence, the citizens of Iran remain committed to this movement and its fight for a free and democratic future. “The Iranians alone will decide the fate of their country, but the United States remains committed to standing by them – including providing tools to support Iranians’ ability to advocate for their own future,” he said.
The new tranche of sanctions, announced on the eve of the anniversary of Amini’s death, also comes as the US appears to be in the final stages of a deal with Tehran that would ensure the release of five Americans deemed wrongly imprisoned in Iran.
Under the agreement, $6 billion of Iranian funds that were in blocked accounts in South Korea will be transferred to blocked accounts in Qatar. Administration officials stressed that the funds could only be used for humanitarian purposes.
The deal also includes a prisoner exchange component, with the U.S. releasing five Iranian nationals in U.S. custody in exchange for the five Americans in Iran.
A senior State Department official told CNN that there was never any consideration of maintaining sanctions until the detainees deal was finalized because the administration felt it was important to mark the anniversary and hold Tehran accountable.