U.S., Europe plan potential sanctions against Iran
QAMISHLI, Syria (North Press) – The U.S. and Europe are planning new sanctions against Iran over attacking Israel in a bid to steer Israel away from carrying out a retaliatory attack against Iran.
Jake Sullivan, U.S. National Security Advisor, said in a statement on Tuesday his country is planning to impose new sanctions targeting Iran’s missile and drone program in the coming days.
The U.S. and Europe flagged a toughening of economic and political sanctions against Iran, according to Reuters.
On April 14, Iran launched a retaliatory attack with more than 100 drones and missiles toward Israel after Israel’s attack on the Iranian consulate in the Syrian capital Damascus that resulted in the killing of five officers and two generals of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), including Mohammad Reza Zahedi, commander of the IRGC’s Quds Force in Syria and Lebanon.
Janet Yellen, U.S. Secretary of the Treasury said in a news conference in Washington that the U.S. would use sanctions, and work with allies, to keep disrupting Iran’s “malign and destabilizing activity.”
Yellen expected further sanctions against Iran to be announced soon.
On Tuesday, Nabila Massrali, EU Spokesperson for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, said that any sanctions in response to the Iranian attack on Israel will be decided by the member states.
The EU has previously sanctioned Iran for the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction and repeated violations of human rights.