DAccording to Federal Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock, the EU will impose sanctions on the Iranian moral police. The aim is to hold those responsible for brutal crimes against women, young people and men accountable, said the Green politician on Monday at the sidelines of a meeting of EU foreign ministers in Luxembourg.
According to a media report, a total of 16 individuals and organizations close to the government are to be put on the sanctions list. The news portal “The Pioneer” reported on Monday that it was about representatives and branches of the security forces that had been using violence against the protests for weeks, including the Iranian vice squad.
Iran has been rocked by violent protests for a month. They were triggered by the death of the young Kurd Mahsa Amini. The 22-year-old died in Tehran on September 16 after being arrested by the vice squad three days earlier on charges of not wearing her headscarf in accordance with strict regulations.
Baerbock had already announced a week ago that the federal government would ensure “that the EU imposes entry bans on those responsible for this brutal repression and freezes their assets in the EU.” The EU foreign ministers will meet in Luxembourg on Monday for consultations. In addition to the military training mission for Ukraine, it should also be about tightened sanctions against Iran.
More victims after prison fire in Tehran
After the fire in the notorious Ewin prison in the capital Tehran, the Iranian judiciary has now reported new fatalities. Four other detainees died in hospital, the Iranian news agency Tasnim reported on Monday, citing the judiciary. This puts the official death toll at eight prisoners. Dozens of other detainees were injured. Observers fear an even higher number of victims.
The prison in northern Tehran is considered nationwide as the place for ill-treatment and torture of political prisoners in particular. Demonstrators are also being held there because of their participation in the protests of the past four weeks, as are dual nationals who have another citizenship in addition to Iranian citizenship. The US sanctioned the prison and its management in May 2018 for “serious human rights violations”.
Several explosions were heard in the detention center on Saturday, according to eyewitnesses and the media from Tehran. A fire also broke out after a conflict. According to the official Iranian account, it is said to be an internal conflict in the prison. This information cannot be independently verified. Videos shared thousands of times on social media showed chaotic images surrounding the prison. Many relatives of the detainees rushed to the scene of the incident out of concern for relatives.
