Daily Times

Iran on Wednesday blacklisted several British institutions and individuals after London sanctioned Iran’s morality police amid protests over the death of Mahsa Amini, a foreign ministry statement said.

Among the seven institutions listed are Britain’s National Cyber Security Centre and the Government Communications Headquarters intelligence organisation, known as GCHQ.

Tehran said their actions have “led to riots, violence and terrorist acts against the Iranian nation”.

Iran has been rocked by protests since the 22-year-old died on September 16, three days after she was arrested by morality police in Tehran for allegedly violating the country’s strict dress code for women.

The street violence has led to dozens of deaths, mostly among protesters but also among the security forces, and hundreds of demonstrators have been arrested.

The 16 organisations and people were blacklisted for “their deliberate actions in supporting terrorism and terrorist groups, promoting and inciting terrorism, spreading violence and hatred, and violating human rights,” Iran’s foreign ministry said in a statement.

British publication BBC Persian and Iran International, two Persian-speaking channels based in the UK and considered “hostile” by the Islamic republic, were also blacklisted.

The nine individuals listed include Conservative Members of Parliament, Thomas Tugendhat, Minister of State for Security, and Bob Blackman.

Sanctions include a visa ban as well as the seizure of any “property and assets” in Iran.

The United States, Britain and Canada have already announced sanctions against Iran over rights violations.

London targeted the “morality police” and security officials on October 10.

The European Union on Monday imposed sanctions on 11 Iranian individuals and four entities for the way they dealt with the month-long demonstrations.