Today the US Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control announced another round of sanctions against Iran. Unlike past sanctions which focused on Iranian banking and IRGC terrorism, this round challenged the very legitimacy of the the regime.

Today, the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) designated two Iranian entities for committing serious human rights abuses on behalf of the Government of Iran, as well as three leaders of one of these entities, the Ansar-e Hizballah organization. Additionally, OFAC designated an entity that has operated information or communications technology that facilitates monitoring or tracking that could assist or enable serious human rights abuses by or on behalf of the Government of Iran. Finally, OFAC designated two individuals for engaging in censorship activities that prohibit, limit, or penalize the exercise of freedom of expression or assembly by citizens of Iran, and one individual for acting for or on behalf of an entity engaged in such censorship activities. These designations come in the wake of recent protests by the Iranian people and the regime’s subsequent brutal crackdown.

“Iran not only exports terrorism and instability across the world, it routinely violates the rights of its own people. The Iranian regime diverts national resources that should belong to the people to fund a massive and expensive censorship apparatus and suppress free speech,” said Treasury Secretary Steven T. Mnuchin. “Those who speak out against the regime’s mismanagement and corruption are subject to abuse and mistreatment in Iran’s prisons. America stands with the people of Iran, and Treasury is taking action to hold the Iranian regime accountable for ongoing human rights abuses, censorship, and other despicable acts it commits against its own citizens.”

Today’s actions target the Iranian regime’s repression of its own people and the suppression of their freedoms of speech, expression, and peaceful assembly. As President Trump emphasized in his May 8, 2018 announcement of his decision to cease the United States’ participation in the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), the United States will not allow Iran’s malign behavior to go unchecked. These actions show a desire to hold malicious actors accountable for their actions even as they try to hide from international scrutiny.

This is a rundown of what was targeted.

#BREAKING: #US Department of the Treasury targeted Human Rights Abuses, Censorship & Enhanced Monitoring by the #Iran's Islamic regime. Hossein Allahkaram, head of #IRGC's "Ansar Hezbollah" extremist militia group is among the individuals in the list.https://t.co/hxTKqQsuHY pic.twitter.com/JAdEv2eFz5

— Babak Taghvaee – Μπάπακ Τακβαίε – بابک تقوایی (@BabakTaghvaee) May 30, 2018

Another US sanctions target, Ansar-e Hezbollah, is linked to the acid attacks against women who aren't dressed in accordance with the regime’s standards: https://t.co/gyCTjvyWHY pic.twitter.com/yIkGSF0Ean

— Ian Talley (@IanTalley) May 30, 2018

#BREAKING
US Treasury blacklists six individuals and three entities linked to #Iran's regime, including Tehran's notorious Evin Prison and the Ansar-e Hezbollah.https://t.co/OVMlPMj9Mk pic.twitter.com/JSDr5CtCGh

— Heshmat Alavi (@HeshmatAlavi) May 30, 2018

Today's US Treasury blacklisting includes:
(1)
Abdulali Ali-Asgari, an Iranian media executive who is the current director-general of #Iran's IRIB.#BanIRIB pic.twitter.com/MUCRRvvsTt

— Heshmat Alavi (@HeshmatAlavi) May 30, 2018

(2)
Hossein Allahkaram is an ultraconservative figure and former military officer. He is head of the coordination council of #Iran's Ansar-e Hezbollah, an entity dispatched to crackdown anti-regime protests.#IRGCTerrorists pic.twitter.com/xMV4FQ7c3s

— Heshmat Alavi (@HeshmatAlavi) May 30, 2018

(3)
Abolhassan Firouzabadi, Secretary of #Iran's Supreme Council of Cyberspace#IRGCTerrorists pic.twitter.com/9mSqdiYkU2

— Heshmat Alavi (@HeshmatAlavi) May 30, 2018

(4)
Abdolsamad Khoramabadi, Chair of #Iran's Commission to Determine the Instances of Criminal Content#IRGCTerrorists pic.twitter.com/Iabaghe2yJ

— Heshmat Alavi (@HeshmatAlavi) May 30, 2018

(5)
Abdolhamid Mohtasham, head of #Iran's Ansar-e Hezbollah#IRGCTerrorists pic.twitter.com/Uiw4Py1q9U

— Heshmat Alavi (@HeshmatAlavi) May 30, 2018

(7)#Iran's Ansar-e Hezbollah, a repressive plainclothes entity dispatched to quell anti-regime protests.#IRGCTerrorists pic.twitter.com/Km2RIumx32

— Heshmat Alavi (@HeshmatAlavi) May 30, 2018

(8)
Evin Prison – A notorious jail used by #Iran's regime to mainly detain political prisoners and a site where thousands of dissidents have been executed.#IRGCTerrorists pic.twitter.com/3r1o3N9fvH

— Heshmat Alavi (@HeshmatAlavi) May 30, 2018

(9)
Hanista Programming Group, developer of the Mobogram spyware (associated to #Iran’s IRGC) & used to arrest many human rights activists & dissidents.@NCRIUS unveiled secrets about this group just months ago.https://t.co/ifQpMqy45j#IRGCTerrorists pic.twitter.com/gqnbTj56mR

— Heshmat Alavi (@HeshmatAlavi) May 30, 2018

This sanctions list is aimed at supporting the protests in Iran and putting the Europeans in the unpleasant position of evading US sanctions on human rights violators if they pursue the idea of ignoring US sanctions.

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