EU Council Sanctions 16 Persons, 3 Entities for Iran Human Rights Violations

EU Council Sanctions Press Releases

Filed March 16th, 2026

Detected March 17th, 2026

Summary

The Council of the EU has sanctioned an additional 16 individuals and three entities for serious human rights violations in Iran. These measures include asset freezes and travel bans, bringing the total number of sanctioned individuals to 263 and entities to 53.

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What changed

The Council of the European Union has imposed restrictive measures on an additional 16 individuals and three entities for their responsibility in serious human rights violations in Iran. These new listings target individuals involved in the suppression of protests in January 2026, including commanders of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and members of the judiciary. Also sanctioned are the Mohammad Rasulullah Corps, the Imam Reza IRGC, the Organization for Prisons and Security and Educational Measures, Naji Research and Development Company for its surveillance app, and Tehran’s Cyber Police.

These sanctions entail asset freezes and a prohibition for EU citizens and companies to make funds or economic resources available to the listed parties. Natural persons also face a travel ban. The EU has also banned exports of equipment that could be used for internal repression or telecommunications monitoring. The measures are part of an existing sanctions regime against Iran for human rights abuses, last extended until April 13, 2026.

What to do next

Review the list of newly sanctioned individuals and entities published in the Official Journal of the European Union.
Update internal compliance systems to block any transactions or provision of funds/economic resources to the listed parties.
Ensure no EU citizens or companies engage with the sanctioned parties, including facilitating travel into EU territories.

Penalties

Asset freeze, travel ban to EU territories, prohibition from making funds, financial assets or economic resources available to listed persons/entities.

Source document (simplified)

Council of the EU
Press release
16 March 2026 15:20

Iran: Council sanctions an additional 16 persons and three entities over serious human rights violations

The Council decided today to impose restrictive measures on an additional 16 persons and three entities responsible for serious human rights violations in Iran.

The new listings target a variety of individuals and entities that played a key role in the suppression of street protests in January 2026, which has led to thousands of civilian casualties.

The Council is sanctioning Iran’s Deputy Minister of the Interior for Security and Law Enforcement Affairs, and various commanders of local branches of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) directly involved in the violent repression of the protests.

Additionally, the Council is listing the Mohammad Rasulullah Corps, which is responsible for coordinating IRGC and Basij forces in Tehran, and the Imam Reza Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, which is the local branch of the IRGC in Khorasan Razavi Province, where the crackdown on protests has been particularly brutal.

Furthermore, the Council is listing today members of the judiciary who participated in prosecutions against peaceful protesters, civil and social activists, including women’s rights activists, as well as journalists and political activists critical of the authorities. Some of the listed individuals are responsible for extorting forced confessions, for violating fair trial guarantees, and for issuing severe sentences against peaceful activists. Listings include the head of the Organization for Prisons and Security and Educational Measures of the Islamic Republic of Iran under whose tenure, serious human rights violations have been documented throughout Iranian prisons. Those include torture and other forms of cruel, inhumane or degrading treatment or punishment, including enforcing the death penalty against juvenile offenders, arbitrary detention and physical abuse of political dissidents and individuals belonging to ethnic and religious minorities, instances of sexual violence and coercion against female prisoners.

Lastly, sanctions are imposed on Naji Research and Development Company (NRDC), an Iranian IT-services and consultancy company responsible for developing the Nazer mobile application used by Iran’s Law Enforcement Forces as a surveillance tool to monitor and control citizens, and the Head of Tehran’s Cyber Police, which plays a key role in filtering the internet, censorship, controlling the social media content and unjustly prosecuting citizens in relation to digital content.

Restrictive measures under the regime for serious human rights abuses and violations in Iran now apply to a total of 263 individuals and 53 entities. Those listed are subject to an asset freeze, and EU citizens and companies are forbidden from making funds, financial assets or economic resources available to them. Natural persons also face a travel ban that prohibits them from entering or transiting through EU territories. A ban on exports to Iran of equipment, that might be used for internal repression, and of equipment for monitoring telecommunications is also in place.

The relevant legal acts have been published in the Official Journal of the European Union.

Background

The EU introduced in 2011 a regime for serious human rights abuses and violations in Iran, consisting of restrictive measures that have been renewed annually since and last extended until 13 of April 2026. Since 2022, the EU has drastically increased restrictive measures, adopting multiple packages of sanctions in the context of growing concerns.

On 9 January 2026, the High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy issued a statement on behalf of the European Union, condemning the use of violence, arbitrary detention and intimidation tactics by security forces against demonstrators. She also called for all individuals unjustly detained for exercising their fundamental rights to be released immediately and urged Iranian authorities to adhere to Iran's international obligations and fully uphold the rights to freedom of expression, association and peaceful assembly, as well as for ensuring the right of access to information, including by restoring access to the internet for all.

The EU strongly supports the fundamental aspirations of the people of Iran for a future where their universal human rights and fundamental freedoms are fully respected, protected and fulfilled.

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