UK imposes sanctions on Iranian Prosecutor General over Alireza Akbari's execution

The United Kingdom has sanctioned Prosecutor General of Iran, Jafar Montazeri, following the execution of British-Iranian National Alireza Akbari. On Saturday, the British administration imposed the sanction with immediate effect. The British-Iranian national and former Iranian Defence Ministry official was executed on January 14 by the draconian Iranian regime over espionage charges. The Iranian authorities went ahead with the execution, despite countries like the UK and the US urging the government not to proceed with it. On Saturday the United Kingdom government came out with a press release announcing the sanctions. 

In the press release, the British government called the execution a “politically motivated act” and stated that the action by the Iranian regime indicates their complete “disregard” for human life. The sanctions were imposed on Iran’s General, Mohammad Jafar Montazeri, who the British government called the “most powerful figure in Iran’s judiciary”. Jafar was responsible for the trial and the sentencing of the death penalty of Akbari.  According to the press release, the sanctions impose an asset freeze and a travel ban to the United Kingdom. 

‘Sanctioning him today underlines our disgust’: Foreign Secy

The British Foreign Secretary, James Cleverly gave out a very strong statement in this regard. The British official stated that Montazeri is at the heart of the “barbaric use” of the penalty. “The Prosecutor General is at the heart of Iran’s barbaric use of the death penalty for political ends. Sanctioning him today underlines our disgust at Alireza Akbari’s execution and our commitment to holding the regime to account for its appalling human rights violations,” said the British Foreign Secretary, James Cleverly. The sanctions by the British government came after UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak condemned the move by the Iranian administration. 

The British Prime Minister took to Twitter to express his condemnation of the incident. “I am appalled by the execution of British-Iranian citizen Alireza Akbari in Iran,” Sunak tweeted. He then went on to add, “This was a callous and cowardly act, carried out by a barbaric regime with no respect for the human rights of their people. My thoughts are with Alireza’s friends and family”. With the execution of Akbari, the draconian regime has executed 5 individuals in recent days. The country is currently engulfed in major anti-government protests following the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini.