US Slaps New Sanctions On Iran’s Revolutionary Guard

A bronze seal for the Department of the Treasury is shown at the US Treasury building in Washington
A bronze seal for the Department of the Treasury is shown at the US Treasury building in Washington

The Biden administration Monday imposed sanctions on Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard (IRGC) Cooperative Foundation and some senior Iranian officials.

The measure was meant to step up pressure on Tehran over its deadly crackdown on protests as regime security forces have killed and seriously injured hundreds of civilians.

The is the latest move taken in coordination with Britain and the European Union to denounce the regime’s deadly clampdown on protests following the death of Mahsa Amini in police custody in September.

The US Treasury said in a statement that the new action targets a "key economic pillar of the IRGC, which funds much of the regime’s brutal suppression; as well as senior security officials coordinating Tehran’s crackdown at the national and provincial levels."

The Treasury described the IRGC Cooperative Foundation as an economic conglomerate established by senior officials of the group to manage its investments and presence in sectors of Iran's economy.

The IRGC Cooperative Foundation was previously designated by Washington under different sanctions but was designated under a human rights authority in Monday's action.

Also targeted were five of the IRGC Cooperative Foundation's board members, Deputy Minister of Intelligence and Security Naser Rashedi, and four senior IRGC commanders in Iran.

The action freezes any US assets of those designated and generally bars Americans from dealing with them.

The UK imposed sanctions on more Iranian individuals and entities on Monday over the country's "brutal repression" of its people. The European Union also introduced new sanctions against Iran on Monday for a "brutal and disproportionate use of force" against protesters.