The US imposes new sanctions against Russia and Iran for the “unfair” detention of US citizens

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27 (EUROPA PRESS)

The United States announced on Thursday a new package of sanctions against Russia and Iran for the “unacceptable” and “unfair” detention of US citizens shortly after Moscow denied a US consular visit to journalist Evan Gershkovich.

“Today’s action is directed at senior officials and security services in Iran and Russia who are responsible for the wrongful detention or hostage-taking of US citizens abroad,” the Under Secretary of the Treasury for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence, Brian Nelson.

For his part, the Secretary of State of the United States, Antony Blinken, has affirmed that, with these actions, Washington promotes “accountability” before those who are “responsible for unjustly detaining American citizens abroad.”

Thus, Blinken has highlighted that this new package of sanctions imposed against both Moscow and Tehran is a “clear and direct warning” of possible reprisals against all those who seek to make the same decisions.

Specifically, on the Iranian side, the sanctions affect Ruholá Bazghandi, an agent who works for the Intelligence of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and who has participated, according to Washington, in actions to plan the murder of journalists, Israeli citizens and others ” enemies of Iran.”

Likewise, a commander of the Corps, Mohamad Kazemi, has also been added to the ‘black list’, in charge of supervising repressive operations against civil society during anti-government protests and “arresting Iranian dissidents, including those with dual nationality”.

Two other sanctioned are Mohamad Mehdi Sayari, deputy deputy chief of the Corps, involved in the organization and logistics of prisoners in Iran, as well as Mohamad Hasan Mohagheghi, deputy brigade general of the Corps, who served as a liaison between senior Iranian officials in operations counterintelligence in Syria.

According to the United States, Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Intelligence has been sanctioned for “its involvement in the wrongful detention of at least one American citizen abroad.”

Similarly, the US State Department has listed Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB) “for its involvement in the wrongful detention of at least one US citizen abroad.”

“The United States will never stop working to secure the release of wrongfully detained or hostage American citizens and reunite them with their loved ones. Today’s actions are a tool furthering that cause, and we will continue to use all authorities at our disposal to bring our people home”, has settled.

Russia has denied this Thursday a consular visit to Gershkovich, imprisoned in Russian territory since the end of March for alleged espionage, in retaliation for denying the issuance of visas to Russian journalists to cover UN Security Council meetings.

Beyond Gerskovich, former US Marine Paul Whelan is sentenced to 16 years in prison in Russia on espionage charges. In the case of Iran, the US citizens Siamak Namazi, Emad Sharghi and Morad Tahbaz are detained in the Iranian prison of Evin, has collected.