The Council of the EU adopted, on Monday 20 February, sanctions against 32 individuals and two entities responsible for serious human rights violations in Iran.
Among those sanctioned are two Iranian ministers: Mohammad Mehdi Esmaeili, Minister of Culture and Islamic Guidance, and Yousef Nouri, Minister of Education. The EU also adopted measures against five members of the Iranian Parliament who are “hardliners”, according to the EU Council, and against two spokespersons of the Iranian Parliament.
The head of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) intelligence protection organisation is being dealt with, as are the IRGC deputy commander and an IRGC spokesperson. The EU has also taken action against two Iranian Ministry of Intelligence and Security officials and co-founders of the Ravin Academy, an EU-listed entity that trains in cybersecurity and hacking and recruits people it has trained to join the Iranian Ministry of Intelligence and Security.
In addition, the head of the judiciary in the Kurdistan Region, the head of the State Organization for Registration of Deeds and Properties, the deputy for training and education of the law enforcement agencies of the Islamic Republic of Iran, former deputy commander of the special law enforcement units, six prosecutors, seven prison directors and two judges are subject to sanctions.
The sanctioned entities are the Law Enforcement Cooperation Foundation of the Islamic Republic of Iran and the Police Science and Social Studies Institute. Both organisations are linked to the Islamic Republic’s law enforcement forces (also known as NAJA) listed by the EU.
With this new decision, the restrictive measures now apply to a total of 196 individuals and 33 entities.
See the legal act: https://aeur.eu/f/5eq
On his arrival at the EU Council, the High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Josep Borrell, had announced that he had spoken on the phone with the Iranian Foreign Minister the previous day to warn him of the adoption of this fifth package of sanctions and to ask for an end to the repression and full compliance with Iran’s obligations to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).
French Minister Catherine Colonna explained that, if press reports of uranium enrichment above 80% were true, this would be “a new and extremely worrying element”. She said she was in contact with her partners and the IAEA.
According to Mr Borrell, the IAEA is expected to provide information on the matter this week.
Call for the release of European citizens
Furthermore, in a statement on behalf of the EU27, the High Representative reiterated the EU’s firm rejection of the Iranian practice of arbitrary detention of EU nationals and dual nationals. “The EU calls upon Iran to end the distressing practice of detaining foreign civilians with a view to making political gains”, he said, describing the growing number of EU citizens currently detained by Iran on “spurious grounds” of great concern. He also called on the country to strictly respect its international obligations, in particular those arising from the Vienna Conventions on Diplomatic and Consular Relations and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights to which Iran is a party. “The policy currently pursued by Iran, including the restrictions imposed on consular access to EU nationals, the denial of consular protection and the right to a fair trial, stands in direct violation of international law”, Mr Borrell warned.
“Due to the acute risk to their personal security, EU member states recommend to their nationals, in line with their respective national risk assessments, to avoid travelling to Iran”, the statement added.
The EU and its Member States also warn that they will continue to monitor the situation closely and take appropriate action.
See the statement: https://aeur.eu/f/5et (Original version in French by Camille-Cerise Gessant with Léa Marchal)