The United States imposes new personal sanctions over repressions in Iran

On September 18, the United States imposed new sanctions against 12 people who, according to the United States, are associated with "ongoing brutal repression" in Iran and beyond, UNN writes with reference to Voice of America.

The US Treasury Department and the State Department noted that the sanctions were imposed two years after the death of 22-year-old Magsa Amini, who died in police custody, and after the suppression of protests that followed the woman's death.

After the "senseless killing of Amini in the custody of Iran's so-called morality police," the Iranian regime "continues to systematically violate the human rights" of Iranians, said US State Department spokesman Matthew Miller.

Bradley Smith, Acting Under Secretary of the Treasury for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence , said that despite the Iranian people's peaceful calls for reform, Iran's leaders "have redoubled the tactics of violence and coercion that the regime has long employed.

The sanctions are aimed at members of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, Iranian prison officials, "as well as individuals responsible for deadly operations abroad," the Finance Ministry said in a statement.

Among the 12 individuals subject to the new sanctions are Hamid Khorramdel, who serves as the commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps in Kohgilouyeh and Boyeh Ahmad provinces, who, according to the Ministry of Finance, suppressed demonstrations in 2019 and 2022, arrested and detained protesters.

The sanctions freeze any assets of these individuals in the U.S. jurisdiction and prohibit U.S. citizens from dealing with them.

Recall

In September last year, 22-year-old Magsa Amini was detained by the Morality Police on charges of improperly wearing a hijab. Amini was taken from the police station to a hospital, where she died a few days later. The protesters believe that the cause of her death was a beating by security forces.

Soon after, street protests began in Iran. People raised slogans against police violence, against the Iranian authorities' fight against dissent, for the democratization of the country and for the overthrow of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

The protests were brutally suppressed. According to human rights activists, more than 600 demonstrators were killed and about 20,000 people were imprisoned during the mass actions. There were also executions.

Since the beginning of 2023, 423 people have been executed in Iran, although it is speculated that the actual number may be much higher. The rate of executions in Iran has risen sharply amid widespread protests following the death of Maghsa Amini.