Iran has New Sanctions Imposed by the United Nations (UN)

The following story is important to Africans because these companies and people are restricted from being allowed to travel world-wide by the United Nations, as they are aleged to be involved in Nuclear Weapon Development for Iran.

This means that they are likely to try and travel and do business in Africa, especially in Shia communites where they can go unnoticed.

-Shimron

UNITED NATIONS, March 3 (Reuters) - The U.N. Security Council imposed a third round of sanctions on Iran on Monday for refusing to suspend sensitive nuclear activities but Tehran dismissed the council's decision as illegal and illegitimate.

There were 14 votes in favor, no votes against and one country, Indonesia, abstained. Previous sanctions resolutions were adopted unanimously in December 2006 and March 2007.

The resolution calls for more travel and financial restrictions on named Iranian individuals and companies and makes some restrictions mandatory.


-Keep in mind:

• Libya voted for the sanctions
• Vietnam voted for the sanctions
• United States voted for the sanctions
• Britain voted for the sanctions
• France voted for the sanctions
• China voted for the sanctions
• Russiavoted for the sanctions
• Indonesia did not vote for or against the sanctions - they abstained
  

(more from Reuters Africa)

Here is the United Nations report published 22/2/2008 by the UN's IAEA that says Iran has not complied with parts of earlier sanctions.

The names of the companies listed in the sanctions are:

• The new sanctions authorize inspection of cargo shipments at airports and seaports transported on planes or ships owned or operated by Iran Air Cargo and Islamic Republic of Iran Shipping Line that are suspected of containing banned items.
• The resolution introduces financial monitoring of two banks with suspected links to proliferation activities, Bank Melli and Bank Saderat.
• It calls on all countries "to exercise vigilance" in entering into new trade commitments with Iran, including granting export credits, guarantees or insurance.
• The resolution also orders countries to freeze the assets of 12 additional companies and 13 individuals with links to Iran's nuclear or ballistic missile programs — and require countries to "exercise vigilance" and report the travel or transit of those Iranians.

The People listed in all three of the UN Travel Bans:

• Brig. Gen. Mohammad Reza Naqdi, of the Revolutionary Guard military corps and close associate of Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. He has alegedly tried to get around previous UN sanctions.
• Mohammad Qannadi, AEOI Vice President for Research & Development
• Dawood Agha-Jani, Head of the PFEP (Natanz)
• Behman Asgarpour, Operational Manager ( Arak)
• Seyed Jaber Safdari (Manager of the Natanz Enrichment Facilities)
• Amir Rahimi (Head of Esfahan Nuclear Fuel Research and Production Centre, which is part of the AEOI’s Nuclear Fuel Production and Procurement Company, which is involved in enrichment-related activities)
• Amir Moayyed Alai (involved in managing the assembly and engineering of centrifuges)
• Mohammad Fedai Ashiani (involved in the production of ammonium uranyl carbonate and management of the Natanz enrichment complex)
• Abbas Rezaee Ashtiani (a senior official at the AEOI Office of Exploration and Mining Affairs)
• Haleh Bakhtiar (involved in the production of magnesium at a concentration of 99.9%)
• Morteza Behzad (involved in making centrifuge components)
• Dr. Mohammad Eslami (Head of Defence Industries Training and Research Institute)
• Seyyed Hussein Hosseini (AEOI official involved in the heavy water research reactor project at Arak)
• M. Javad Karimi Sabet (Head of Novin Energy Company, which is designated under resolution 1747 (2007))
• Hamid-Reza Mohajerani (involved in production management at the Uranium Conversion Facility (UCF) at Esfahan)
• Houshang Nobari (involved in the management of the Natanz enrichment complex)
• Abbas Rashidi (involved in enrichment work at Natanz)
• Ghasem Soleymani (Director of Uranium Mining Operations at the Saghand Uranium Mine)

Here is a copy of the resolution from the Security Council Web site