Iran Blacklists Trump, Other Senior Officials
TEHRAN (Dispatches) -- Iran blacklisted U.S. President Donald Trump and several current and former senior U.S. officials on Tuesday over "terrorist and anti-human rights” acts.
Tehran’s move, announced on the last full day of the Trump administration, allows the seizure of any assets in Iran of sanctioned individuals. There have been no reports of any such assets, so the move is mostly symbolic.
The Trump administration rained sanctions down on Iranian officials, politicians and companies after withdrawing the United States in 2018 from Tehran’s 2015 nuclear deal with world powers.
Among officials sanctioned by Iran were Secretary of State Mike Pompeo; ex-Defense Secretary Mark Esper; Acting Defense Secretary Christopher Miller and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, the Foreign ministry said in a statement.
Other blacklisted individuals included Central Intelligence Agency Director Gina Haspel; former National Security Adviser John Bolton; former U.S. Iran envoy Brian Hook; Elliott Abrams, Washington’s special representative on Iran and Venezuela; and Treasury Department sanctions official Andrea Gacki, it said.
The officials were blacklisted "for their role in terrorist and anti-human rights activities against Iran and its citizens”, Foreign ministry spokesman Saeed Khatibzadeh said.
Iran’s government spokesman Ali Rabiei said, "Tomorrow, the evil Trump administration will come to an end and the United States will have a new president who has the opportunity to represent the loud voice of the American people for the revision of the approaches that led to the U.S. humiliation, confusion and isolation over at least the past four years.”
He said the world community wants the incoming administration in the United States to reverse course and honor international law, calling on the new White House team to avoid a selective approach in making up for the "stain of shame” it will inherit from its predecessor.
"Today, America’s accountability and respect for international law and norms are
a global demand. The new U.S. administration should not act selectively when it comes to compensating for the record and, in fact, the stain of shame left by the previous administration,” Rabiei said at a media briefing here Tuesday.
"The U.S. will soon have a fresh opportunity to sincerely and unconditionally return to its obligations under UN Security Council Resolution 2231 and open new horizons for its relations with Iran and the international community, instead of acting on the temptations [to do things] that result in widespread violations of international law and crimes against humanity in seemingly civilized ways at the expense of global peace and security as well as the interests of the Iranian and American people,” he said.
Tehran’s move, announced on the last full day of the Trump administration, allows the seizure of any assets in Iran of sanctioned individuals. There have been no reports of any such assets, so the move is mostly symbolic.
The Trump administration rained sanctions down on Iranian officials, politicians and companies after withdrawing the United States in 2018 from Tehran’s 2015 nuclear deal with world powers.
Among officials sanctioned by Iran were Secretary of State Mike Pompeo; ex-Defense Secretary Mark Esper; Acting Defense Secretary Christopher Miller and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, the Foreign ministry said in a statement.
Other blacklisted individuals included Central Intelligence Agency Director Gina Haspel; former National Security Adviser John Bolton; former U.S. Iran envoy Brian Hook; Elliott Abrams, Washington’s special representative on Iran and Venezuela; and Treasury Department sanctions official Andrea Gacki, it said.
The officials were blacklisted "for their role in terrorist and anti-human rights activities against Iran and its citizens”, Foreign ministry spokesman Saeed Khatibzadeh said.
Iran’s government spokesman Ali Rabiei said, "Tomorrow, the evil Trump administration will come to an end and the United States will have a new president who has the opportunity to represent the loud voice of the American people for the revision of the approaches that led to the U.S. humiliation, confusion and isolation over at least the past four years.”
He said the world community wants the incoming administration in the United States to reverse course and honor international law, calling on the new White House team to avoid a selective approach in making up for the "stain of shame” it will inherit from its predecessor.
"Today, America’s accountability and respect for international law and norms are
a global demand. The new U.S. administration should not act selectively when it comes to compensating for the record and, in fact, the stain of shame left by the previous administration,” Rabiei said at a media briefing here Tuesday.
"The U.S. will soon have a fresh opportunity to sincerely and unconditionally return to its obligations under UN Security Council Resolution 2231 and open new horizons for its relations with Iran and the international community, instead of acting on the temptations [to do things] that result in widespread violations of international law and crimes against humanity in seemingly civilized ways at the expense of global peace and security as well as the interests of the Iranian and American people,” he said.