Jim Patterson on U.S. Sanctions on Members of Iran's Guardian Council

U.S. sanctions clerics in Iran over election
Matthew Lee,  ASSOCIATED PRESS February 21, 2020

WASHINGTON – The Trump administration on Thursday ratcheted up pressure on Iran by slapping sanctions on top members of a powerful clerical body that disqualified thousands of candidates from running in that country’s parliamentary elections.

A day before Iranians go to the polls, the administration imposed sanctions on two senior officials of the Guardian Council, including its chief and three members of its elections supervisory committee. Officials said those targeted were responsible for silencing the voice of the Iranian people by rejecting more than 7,000 candidates. See endnote 1.

The penalties announced by the State and Treasury departments include freezes on any assets the five may have in U.S. jurisdictions, or that they try to move through the U.S. banking system. Also, Americans are barred from doing business with them. It was not immediately clear if the sanctions would have any practical effect, but Brian Hooks, the U.S. special envoy for Iran, said it’s important to highlight the role of clerics who are not widely known outside Iran. Endnote 2. 

Thursday’s announcement was the latest move in the Trump administration’s “maximum pressure campaign” against Iran that began after the president withdrew the U.S. from the 2015 nuclear deal and began to re-impose sanctions that had been eased under that accord.

Barely a week goes by without new sanctions. U.S. officials have said the campaign will continue until Iran changes its behavior.

The five Iranians targeted Thursday “have denied the Iranian people free and fair parliamentary elections,” Hook told reporters. “Together these five officials oversee a process that silences the voice of the Iranian people, curtails their freedom and limits their political participation.”

Those targeted include the chief of the council, Ahmad Jannati, and senior member Mohammad Yazdi. Jannati, 92, is a hard-line cleric who once supported former President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. Yazdi is another influential member of the council who served as the Iran’s judiciary chief in the 1990s. The sanctions also affect Abbas Ali Kadkhodaei, the council’s spokesman.

Endnote 1. An estimated 12,000 candidates, nearly 60% were disqualified because, among other excuses, their faith was not consistent with the Supreme Leader. Average age in Iran is 32. I assume the 7,000 candidates rejected were young Iranians, many are pledging not to vote. 

Endnote 2. I agree it is important for Americans and the world to know the names of these human rights abusers. It's important also to know the ages of these guys. Yazdi is 88; I do not have an estimate on Abbas Ali Kadkhodaei.