Congress closes in on first new Iran sanctions since nuclear deal
Tehran has vowed to retaliate if a US bill imposing additional sanctions on Iran becomes law.
The House voted 419-3 Tuesday to impose additional sanctions on Iran’s defense sector, moving the bill one step closer to President Donald Trump’s desk.
The Iran sanctions are tied to a broader package that also targets Russia for its support of the Bashar al-Assad regime in Syria, its invasion of Ukraine and its interference in the US presidential election last year. They would mark the first new congressional sanctions on Iran since the 2015 nuclear agreement.
While there are some slight alterations to the bill’s sanctions on Russia, the language on Iran is identical to the version the Senate passed 98-2 in June. Like its Senate counterpart, the House bill would block the assets of any individual who works with Iran on its ballistic missile program or sells it arms.
The bill also sanctions anyone associated with Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps or anyone whom the United States determines is complicit in Iranian human rights violations. Anyone sanctioned under the act may be removed after a five-year review.
