US sanctions former Iran intel chief behind deadly bombings of Jewish targets
A former Iranian official involved in a 1995 suicide bombing
in Israel that killed an American student and the 1994 AMIA Jewish center in
Buenos Aires is among the targets of US financial sanctions and visa
restrictions.
The actions against 12 Iranian individuals and entities by
the State and Treasury departments were announced Wednesday.
Ali Fallahian, who served as the head of Iran’s intelligence
service from 1989 to 1997, and his immediate family are barred from entering
the United States.
During his service, Fallahian was “involved in multiple
assassinations and attacks across the globe,” according to the State
Department, including the killing of Alisa Flatow, 20, an exchange student from
New Jersey. Flatow was killed in the attack on an Israeli bus in the Gaza
Strip, prior to Israel’s disengagement from the coastal area.
The State Department also said Fallahian “bears
responsibility” for the 1994 bombing of the AMIA Jewish community center in
Buenos Aires that killed 85 and injured hundreds.
Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said in a statement that the
sanctions and visa restrictions “send a message of support to the Iranian
people that we will continue to support their demands for transparent and
accountable governance and speak out for those who are being silenced by this regime.
Our pressure on Iran to treat its own people with dignity and respect will not
cease.”
Iran’s current Interior minister, Abdolreza Rahmani Fazli,
is among the others sanctioned under the new order. The State Department said
Fazli gave carte blanche orders authorizing Iranian police forces to use lethal
force on peaceful protesters and bystanders, leading to the death of many,
including at least 23 minors.
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