"We deplore the continuing increase in executions and the widespread repression of Iranian citizens, including human rights defenders, journalists and members of the opposition."
-- EU Foreign Affairs Chief Catherine Ashton
According to Reuters the European Union has imposed sanctions targeting 17 Iranian officials whom it says play key roles in serious human rights violations.
Among the names on the list are the head of the Iranian judiciary, Sadeq Larijani for signing off death sentences that include stoning, floggings, amputations and the pouring of acid into the eyes of those convicted.
Equipment that can monitor or intercept telecommunications are banned from exportation to Iran.
Khameini's representative to the Revolutionary Guards Ali Saeedi and Ali Mirhedjazi the deputy chief of the Supreme Leaders office have also been sanctioned for alleged responsibility in the violent suppression of opposition protests.
Also targeted was the head of the state broadcasting network Ezzatollah Zarghami for broadcasting "show-trials" as well as Reza Taqipour the minister of information and communication for controlling and censoring the internet.
The rest of those blacklisted include a judge and several prosecutors as well as the interior minister for political affairs for infringing on press freedoms.
The EU has also placed a ban on the export of equipment that could be used to monitor or block telecommunications.
3 comments:
Only seventeen?
Surely there's more than that?
'BLIX: US, ISRAEL SOURCE MOST OF IAEA ALLEGATIONS
Sun Mar 25, 2012 1:23PM GMT
A former chief of the International Atomic Energy Agency has challenged a report delivered by the IAEA in November on Iran’s nuclear activities, pinpointing that the agency receives unverified intelligence, mostly from the US and Israel.
In an exclusive interview with Qatar-based news network, Al Jazeera, on Saturday, Hans Blix stated that the IAEA received information from a variety of sources, mostly from the United States and Israel.
“My view is that they must assess it very carefully and critically because otherwise they can be pulled by their noose,” he asserted.
“I remember from inspections in 2002 and 2003 that there was a famous document that allegedly to be a contract between Iraq and Niger for the import of yellow cake of uranium oxide quoted by [former US] President [George W.] Bush in his State of the Union message. The IAEA had it for one day and concluded that it was a forgery. [Former IAEA head, Mohamed] ElBaradei then announced it was not authentic. That shows how careful you have to be,” Blix stated.
Regarding the Western hype over Iran’s Parchin military site, Blix said, “They (the inspectors) have been there several times,” adding, “Parchin is a military site with thousands of buildings. Any country would be reluctant to let international inspectors go anywhere near their military sites.”
“In a way the Iranians have been more open [about their nuclear activities] than most other countries would be,” he added.
Blix further called on the Western states to support Iran’s bid to join the World Trade Organization (WTO) and assist the Islamic Republic’s civilian nuclear program.
mat--- i guess that you're too pre-occupied to notice that this post had nothingto do with the nuclear weapons program.
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