The White House announced Friday additional economic sanctions on Iran in retaliation for the missile strikes against American targets in the Middle East.
“Today’s sanctions are part of our commitment to stop the Iranian regime’s global terrorist activities,” Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said after announcing the sanctions at the White House.
The sanctions will be leveled on eight senior Iranian officials as well as the country’s metal industry.
Secretary of State Mike Pompeo noted that since President Trump took office, Iranian Leader Hassan Rohani admitted sanctions had cost the country $200 billion.
“As long as Iran’s outlaw ways continue, we will continue to impose sanctions,” Pompeo said to reporters at the White House.
The sanctions target specific military officials close to the Iranian Supreme leader who were responsible for launching the attacks, including Brigadier General Gholamreza Soleimani, Supreme National Security Council Secretary, Ali Shamkhani, Expediency Council member Mohsen Reza’i, Deputy Coordinator of the IRGC Mohammad Reza Naqdi, and advisors Mohammad Reza Ashtiani, Ali Abdollahi, Ali Asghar Hejazi and Mohsen Qomi.
“We’re striking at the heart of the Islamic Republic’s security apparatus,” Pompeo said, noting the sanctions included the leaders of the Iranian regime’s “brute squad” that killed over 1,000 Iranian protestors in 2019.
The administration also targeted 17 Iranian metals producers and mining companies with sanctions and other specific entities.
“The president has said we don’t want war, we want Iran to behave like a normal nation,” Pompeo said, adding that the sanctions were part of President Trump’s maximum pressure campaign to stop Iran’s “40-year long effort to terrorize the world.”
The secretary of state urged Iran to stop global terrorist activities and focus their attention on their own citizens, who were protesting their government.
“You can see the protests, protests that we expect will continue that will demand from the Iranian regime that they begin to treat the Iranian people in the way that they so richly deserve,” he said. “And this administration will continue to support those efforts as well.”
President Trump also issued a statement after leveling the additional sanctions.
“These punishing economic sanctions will remain until the Iranian regime changes its behavior,” he wrote. “The United States is ready to embrace peace with all who seek it.”