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EU Sanctions 2 Individuals, IRGC-Linked Entity Over Strait of Hormuz Restrictions

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The European Union added two individuals and one entity to its sanctions list over actions that threaten freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz, the Council of the European Union said Monday.

The measures fall under the bloc's expanded framework targeting activities that restrict lawful transit through international waterways and violate established navigation rights.

The bloc designated the Hormozgan Provincial Command of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Navy, along with Mohammad Akbarzadeh and Hamid Hosseini, for supporting policies that impede navigation through the Strait of Hormuz.

According to the Council, the Hormozgan Provincial Command receives vessel identification, cargo, and destination information and uses that data to screen ships seeking passage through the strait.

The EU said the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Navy has imposed a transit fee system that requires some vessels to pay tolls before crossing the waterway.

Serving as the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Navy's deputy commander for political affairs and spokesperson, Akbarzadeh has supported the toll system and threatened vessels with missile or drone attacks, the Council said.

The Council said Hosseini, a representative of Iran's Oil, Gas and Petrochemical Products Exporters' Union and a member of Iran's Chamber of Commerce, has promoted compliance with Iranian transit assessments and fees.

Following the latest additions, the sanctions framework now covers 26 individuals and legal persons and 27 entities, with those listed facing asset freezes, funding restrictions, and, where applicable, European Union travel bans.

Responding to the sanctions, Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi criticized the European Union's move in a post on X, alleging that the bloc ignored what he described as a US naval blockade against Iran and reaffirming Tehran's intention to continue exercising its sovereign rights in the Strait of Hormuz.

He added that Iran was not a member of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, an international treaty governing maritime activities, and therefore not violating international law.

Iran, a signatory to UNCLOS in 1982, did not ratify the same, and is not formally bound by the treaty's obligations.

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