US announces new sanctions on Iran after missile strikes
Sanctions will target eight senior Iranian officials as well as anyone involved in the Iranian textile, construction, manufacturing or mining sectors.
The Trump administration has announced a new wave of sanctions on Iran following this week’s missile strikes by the Islamic Republic on US bases in Iraq.
Secretary of state Mike Pompeo and treasury secretary Steven Mnuchin said the new sanctions will target eight senior Iranian officials involved in “destabilising” activities in the Middle East as well as Tuesday’s missile strike.
The missile attack came in retaliation for the US killing of a senior Iranian general in a drone strike.
Mr Mnuchin said President Donald Trump will issue an executive order imposing sanctions on anyone involved in the Iranian textile, construction, manufacturing or mining sectors.
They will also impose separate sanctions against the steel and iron sectors.
The administration has already reinstated all the US sanctions that were eased under the 2015 nuclear deal, which has caused significant economic hardship in Iran and cut its oil exports to historic lows.
Iran this week launched the strikes in retaliation for the US drone strike that killed Revolutionary Guard General Qassem Soleimani, the country’s most powerful commander, in Baghdad last week.
