From the Liveblog of
Thursday, February 20, 2020
US sanctions Iranian officials for barring candidates from upcoming elections
Add ToI as a Preferred Source on GoogleWASHINGTON — The United States slaps sanctions on five Iranian officials in charge of vetting candidates for this week’s parliamentary elections, in which thousands have been barred from running.
The targeted officials include Ahmad Jannati, a powerful cleric accused of overseeing the disqualification of candidates as part of the Guardian Council. The ultra-conservative also plays a key role in a body that selects the regime’s supreme leader.
“The Trump Administration will not tolerate the manipulation of elections to favor the regime’s malign agenda, and this action exposes those senior regime officials responsible for preventing the Iranian people from freely choosing their leaders,” US Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin says in a statement.
— AFP
The Times of Israel Community.