US Sanctions Show 'Utter Disregard' for Human Rights

The United States’ latest economic sanctions against Iran display "utter disregard" for the human rights of all Iranians, Foreign Minister Mohammed Javad Zarif said on Wednesday.
The US Treasury on Tuesday sanctioned several Iranian banks and a handful of companies it says are linked to Iran’s Basij volunteer forces.
“Latest US sanctions violate 2 ICJ orders: to not impede humanitarian trade & to not aggravate the dispute. Utter disregard for rule of law & human rights of an entire people. US outlaw regime’s hostility toward Iranians heightened by addiction to sanctions,” Zarif said in a Twitter post.
By ICJ, Zarif was referring to the International Court of Justice, which recently ordered the US to ensure that sanctions against Iran do not affect humanitarian aid or civil aviation safety.
Tensions between Iran and the United States rose after US President Donald Trump withdrew from a multilateral agreement on Iran’s nuclear program in May and reimposed sanctions in August.
“US addiction to sanctions is out of control,” Zarif also wrote on Twitter.
He said in the tweet that one of the banks was vital for food and medicine imports.
“Iranian private bank key to food/medicine import is designated because of alleged EIGHT degrees of separation w/ another arbitrary target. In comparison, all humans on planet are connected by SIX degrees of separation. You do the math,” Zarif said on Twitter.
Earlier, Foreign Ministry Spokesman Bahram Qasemi railed against the “spitefulness” of the US government in imposing the sanctions, IRNA reported.