EU imposes new sanctions on Iran, Syria

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EU imposes new sanctions on Iran, Syria

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European Union ha accused Iran's Revolutionary Guard of providing support to Syrian forces.

25 August,2011 10:24 am

It accuses the Quds Force of Irans Revolutionary Guard of providing support to Syrian forces seeking to quell the uprising against President Bashar Assad.Reporting from Beirut and Tehran— The European Union accused an elite branch of Irans Revolutionary Guard of giving supplies and other support to Syria to help crush a popular uprising against President Bashar Assads autocratic government.The EU banned European travel by the Quds Force, as well as by 15 Syrian officials and four branches of Syrias intelligence services, and froze their assets in sanctions adopted Tuesday and made public Wednesday.The Quds Force has provided technical assistance, equipment and support to the Syrian security services to repress civilian protest movements, the EU alleged.Syrian forces have escalated their five-month military offensive against government critics despite condemnation from Western and Arab nations. On Wednesday, Syrian tanks and forces stormed two towns near the border with Iraq and killed at least seven people nationwide, according to opposition groups.Western and Arab diplomats have spoken privately of accusations that Iran, which used force to quell its own protests after the disputed 2009 presidential election, was lending its expertise and men to Assad as he struggles to keep his government from being the latest to fall in the recent Arab uprisings.International authorities have not yet made public their evidence, however, and the EU sanctions announced Wednesday gave none. British and other newspapers have cited anonymous diplomatic accounts of bearded men speaking Irans Persian language among Syrian forces.