US sanctions Iran information minister over ‘repressive internet censorship’

Rudaw

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region – The United States slapped sanctions on Iran’s Minister of Information and Communications Technology after Tehran shut down internet in the country during protests against a dramatic hike in fuel protests.

Minister Mohammad Javad Azari Jahromi, “who is a former employee of Iran’s notorious Ministry of Intelligence, has advanced the Iranian regime’s policy of repressive internet censorship since he took office in mid-2017 and has also been involved in surveillance against opposition activists,” the US Treasury stated on Friday.

“Iran’s leaders know that a free and open internet exposes their illegitimacy, so they seek to censor internet access to quell anti-regime protests,” said Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin. “We are sanctioning Iran’s Minister of Information and Communications Technology for restricting internet access, including to popular messaging applications that help tens of millions of Iranians stay connected to each other and the outside world.”

Azari Jahromi reacted to the sanctions - ironically using the internet to broadcast his comments - tweeting that he will "continue advocating access to Internet & I won't let US to prohibit Iran development."

Iran shut down the internet on November 16 as security forces launched a crackdown on nationwide protests. Only a few select government agencies and media had access to the internet. Some connectivity was restored on Thursday, but as of Friday remains at just 15 percent of normal levels according to monitoring group NetBlocks.

A week ago, thousands of Iranians joined spontaneous protests after the government raised the cost of fuel, doubling and tripling prices at the pump.

Amnesty International has accused Tehran of shutting down the internet in order to prevent people from sharing evidence of authorities “shooting unarmed protesters.”


Iranian President Hassan Rouhani claimed a small number of rioters hijacked the demonstrations, backed by Iran’s enemies, including the United States and Israel. “The number of people who had taken to the streets was determined and it turned out that only a few hooligans were among them; but the hooligans were well organised and armed, acting on behalf of the regional reactionaries, the Zionists and Americans,” he said on Wednesday.

More than 100 protesters have been killed, according to Amnesty International. Iran’s Revolutionary Guards (IRGC) said the protests have been brought under control, though with the ongoing internet blackout, it has been almost impossible to verify this. 

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has asked Iranian protesters to submit documentation of Iran’s crackdown to the US, promising to “expose and sanction the abuses.”

“We will hold members of the Iranian regime accountable for their violent repression of the Iranian people,” he tweeted of the sanctions on the information minister.

Over the past year, Washington has imposed increasingly harsh economic sanctions on Iran, after withdrawing from the nuclear deal. US President Donald Trump’s administration is trying to use a “maximum pressure” campaign to force Iran back to the bargaining table for a new deal, one that would address Tehran’s missile programs and regional activities. 

The sanctions, especially on Iran’s oil sector, have crippled the economy. Introducing the fuel hike last week, Rouhani admitted that financial pressures have increased on 75 percent of the population and income from the new fuel rates will be funneled to the country’s poorest. 

 

Updated at 12:01 am, November 23, 2019.