Ershadi: US kept food/medicine sanctions on Iran, broke court verdict

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: Agencies
29 Oct 2022 12:04

Iran's Deputy Representative to the UN Zahra Ershadi calls out the US for not abiding by the ICJ verdict to end food and medicine-related sanctions on Iran.

Iran's Deputy Representative to UN Zahra Ershadi during a UN general assembly.

Iran's Deputy Representative to the UN Zahra Ershadi slammed the US for ignoring the temporary verdict of the International Court of Justice on ending the food and medicine sanctions against the country, highlighting that the US even imposed sanctions on Iran as it was battling the COVID-19 pandemic.

Ershadi pointed out the US blockade on Iranian assets, stating, "Presently we have files at the International Court of Justice at the Hague. One of them is titled "Some of Iran's Properties", adding that these assets belong to Iranian organizations, companies as well as governmental officials.

The UN envoy said that the US' domestic policies are in breach of international laws, noting that, "1.8 billion dollars of Iran's monetary assets, including the assets of the Central Bank of Iran, were blocked by the US' implementation of domestic verdicts, which are in fact illegitimate.

It's noteworthy that the Islamic Republic of Iran still suffers from the oppressive unilateral sanctions imposed by the United States for decades now.

Last September, following a petition submitted by Iran in 2016 after the US Supreme Court ordered the freezing of $2 billion in Iranian assets over unfounded accusations, the first session to discuss the legal matter took place before the UN's highest court to unfreeze the billions of dollars belonging to Iran.

The US responded by urging the International Court of Justice to dismiss the case launched by Iran, citing the "unclean hands" legal principle, which has never been used as a reason for the Hague-based court to throw out a case.

The illegal and unilateral "maximum pressure" campaign imposed by the United States against Iran was launched under former President Donald Trump, who had unilaterally withdrawn from the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) aimed at offering Iran sanction relief in exchange for the country slowing down its nuclear activity. The US then began reimposing sanctions, in addition to implementing additional bans under alternative labels, prompting Tehran to roll back its commitments made under the pact.

US President Joe Biden took office with hopes of restoring the agreement, however, his aides rejected the Iranian demands under various pretexts, and sought to keep some of the sanctions against Tehran.