On Tuesday 11 April, the Council of the EU decided, by written procedure, to extend by a year – until 13 April 2018 – the restrictive measures against Iran in connection with serious human rights violations in the country.
The sanctions against 82 people (including judges, prosecutors, military, police and political figures) and one entity (the Centre for Investigations on Organised Crime) are extended, as is the ban on exporting equipment to Iran that is likely to be used for internal repression and equipment for monitoring telecommunications.
The decision will take effect with the publication on 12 April of the legal acts in the Official Journal of the EU.
The European Union first took out sanctions connected with human rights in April 2011 (see EUROPE 10358). (Original version in French by Camille-Cerise Gessant)