Iran, June 25, 2019 – US President Donald Trump on Monday signed an executive order imposing fresh sanctions against the clerical regime ruling Iran. These sanctions, described as “hard hitting” by Trump, are intended against the mullahs’ regime Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei his assets and his financial system.

Speaking to reporters at the White House, Trump implied that the sanctions were in response to Tehran’s aggressive actions in recent weeks including downing of a U.S. drone and a number of other malign activities by the regime. The world has witnessed Iran’s attack on oil tankers and other malign activities in recent weeks, Mr. Trump said.

“We will continue to increase pressure on Tehran,” Trump told reporters in the Oval Office. “Never can Iran have a nuclear weapon.”

The U.S. already has sanctions on Iran’s oil industry and other sectors.

Tensions between the U.S. and Iran have grown since Trump pulled the U.S. out of the multilateral Iran nuclear deal that had been brokered during the Obama administration.

“We do not seek conflict with Iran or any other country,” Trump said. “I can only tell you we cannot ever let Iran have a nuclear weapon. I think a lot of restraint has been shown by us but that doesn’t mean we’re going to show it in the future.”

The US Treasury Department issued a statement saying, “Today’s designations reinforce the President’s action in issuing an Executive Order imposing sanctions on the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Republic of Iran as well as the Supreme Leader’s Office. The President’s order will deny Iran’s leadership access to financial resources and authorizes the targeting of persons appointed to certain official or other positions by the Supreme Leader or the Supreme Leader’s Office. Moreover, any foreign financial institution that knowingly facilitates a significant financial transaction for entities designated under this Executive Order could be cut off from the U.S. financial system.”

Later, Trump said the sanctions would have been imposed regardless of the incident over the drone.

Iranian opposition President Maryam Rajavi, head of the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI), welcomed the latest U.S. measures targeting Tehran’s mullahs.

Sanctioning Khamenei & his office, the epicenter of crime, corruption & terrorism in #Iran, is spot-on & most imperative. These sanctions must be expanded to the mullahs’ Ministry of Intelligence & Security (MOIS), which has blocked the uprising for a #FreeIran.
— Maryam Rajavi (@Maryam_Rajavi) June 24, 2019

US Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said Iranian regime Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif would be targeted with U.S. sanctions later this week.

Sanctions were also imposed on eight senior commanders of Navy, Aerospace, and Ground Forces of the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC), the U.S. Treasury Department added.

The U.S State Department recently designated the IRGC as a “Foreign Terrorist Organization” (FTO).

Analysis by PMOI/MEK