Sanctions

President Donald Trump, joined by Sen. John Barrasso (R-WY), Speaker of the House Mike Johnson (R-LA) and other lawmakers, holds up an executive order after signing a series of bills related to California’s vehicle emissions standards during an event in the East Room of the White House on June 12, 2025 in Washington, DC.

Trump signs executive order ending decades-old Syria sanctions

The sweeping directive unwinds layers of sanctions but maintains Syria's designation as a state sponsor of terrorism.

Bank Sepah

Cyberattack strikes Iranian bank with ties to IRGC: What we know

The hacker group that claims to be behind the attack said it targeted the bank over its role in financing Iran’s ballistic missile and nuclear programs.

ALAIN JOCARD/AFP via Getty Images

France blocks Israeli weapons display at Paris airshow: What to know

After their exclusion from the Eurosatory and Euronaval fairs, Israeli armament companies have now been prevented from participating in the Bourget defense show in Paris.

(L to R) Itamar Ben-Gvir, Israeli far-right lawmaker and leader of the Otzma Yehudit (Jewish power) party, and Bezalel Smotrich, Israeli far-right lawmaker and leader of the Religious Zionist Party, attend a rally with supporters in the southern Israeli city of Sderot on Oct. 26, 2022.

Breaking | Last Updated: June 10, 2025, 12:11 pm

UK, Australia, Canada sanction Israel’s Ben-Gvir, Smotrich for inciting violence

Both far-right Israeli ministers will have their assets frozen and face travel bans.

Latest News

Exclusive

Trump to sign sweeping order rescinding Syria sanctions

People queue in front of a teller next to a pile of banknotes of different currencies at a commercial bank affiliated with Syria's central bank in Damascus on December 16, 2024. Governments worldwide are stepping up efforts to engage with Syria's new interim rulers, just over a week after Islamist-led rebels ousted president Bashar al-Assad, ending decades of brutal rule and civil war. (Photo by Louai Beshara / AFP) / "The erroneous CAPTION appearing in the metadata of this photo by Louai Beshara has been

Elizabeth Hagedorn

By Elizabeth Hagedorn

In Washington, DC, reporting on diplomacy, regional politics, human rights

Syria to rejoin SWIFT payment system ‘within a few weeks’: What to know

People queue to use ATM machines outside a bank in Damascus on Dec. 16, 2024.

Rubio announces sanctions on ICC judges over US, Israel probes

Secretary of State Marco Rubio speaks during the American Compass New World Gala at the National Building Museum on June 3, 2025 in Washington.

EU sanctions Sunni factions accused of violence against Syria’s Alawites, Kurds

A handout picture from the Syrian state news agency SANA showing members of the security forces in Syria's coastal region

Police guard the Grand Hotel on the day the JCPOA Iran nuclear talks are to resume on May 25, 2021, in Vienna, Austria.

Blinken: Iran's nuclear 'breakout time' a matter of weeks if violations continue

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken told lawmakers it was unclear if Iran is "willing and prepared" to resume compliance with the nuclear agreement.

Police guard the Grand Hotel on the day the JCPOA Iran nuclear talks are to resume on April 27, 2021, in Vienna, Austria. Representatives from the United States, Iran, the European Union and other participants from the original Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) are meeting both directly and indirectly over possibly reviving the plan. The JCPOA was the European-led initiative by which Iran agreed not to pursue a nuclear weapon in exchange for concessions, though the United States, under the administ

Rouhani claims US has agreed to lift key Iran sanctions

Iran's president said the United States has agreed to remove substantial economic sanctions against the Islamic Republic following marathon talks in Vienna.

Iranians check a display board at a currency exchange shop in the capital Tehran, on Sept. 29, 2020. For Iran, struggling from sanctions imposed under Washington's policy of "maximum pressure", the US presidential race raised hope of change — but also fears that life could get even worse.

Iran's president claims sanctions will soon be lifted

President Hassan Rouhani has vowed to fulfill his promise to remove sanctions during the final months of his administration.

A photo taken on May 3, 2021 shows a giant portrait of President Bashar al-Assad at the Umawiyin square in Syria's capital Damascus, ahead of this month's presidential elections.

Saudi Arabia’s intelligence chief meets with Syrian counterpart in Damascus

The meeting takes place during the first official visit to Damascus by Saudi Arabia since 2012.

Abbas Araghchi (C), political deputy at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Iran, is leaving the Grand Hotel Wien after the closed-door nuclear talks in Vienna on April 16, 2021, where diplomats of the EU, China, Russia and Iran hold their talks.

Iran opposes interim deal in 'complicated' Vienna talks

The Iranian negotiators appeared dogged in their demand for a full removal of US sanctions, rejecting reports that an interim deal is in the making.

Smoke from a presumed drone or artillery strike on October 3, 2020, in Stepanakert, Nagorno-Karabakh.

Is Canadian embargo harbinger of more sanctions for Turkey?

The Canadian government’s decision to indefinitely cancel military export permits to Turkey has touched a nerve in the Turkish defense industry and bureaucracy.

Men view the covers of local newspapers laid out at a stall in the Shemiran district of Iran's capital, Tehran, on April 14, 2021. Iran warned it would start enriching uranium up to 60% purity after an explosion it blamed on archenemy Israel hit its key nuclear facility in Natanz.

Iran says 60% uranium enrichment an answer to attack

President Hassan Rouhani says the recent decision to enrich uranium to 60% is in response to the alleged Israeli attack on Iran's Natanz nuclear facility.

Chinese diplomat Wang Qun in Vienna

Iran nuclear talks to resume next week

Meetings on the Iran nuclear agreement will continue in Vienna as Iran continues its demand for "Trump sanctions" to be removed.

Al-Monitor Staff

By Al-Monitor Staff

abbas araghchi in Vienna

White House faces tough task of tearing down Iran sanctions wall to save nuclear deal

In Trump's final days, the White House introduced a slew of new sanctions aimed at hindering a return to the nuclear deal. Yet since the designations were so blatantly politicized, the risk of undoing them is politically manageable.

Korean ship seized by Iran

Iran releases South Korean ship

The Hankuk Chemi tanker was released following an investigation into alleged water pollution, but the real reason for its detention may have been frozen Iranian funds in South Korea.

In this handout provided by the U.S. Navy, an F/A-18E Super Hornet assigned to the Sidewinders of Strike Fighter Squadron (VFA) 86 launches from the flight deck of the aircraft carrier USS Dwight D. Eisenhower (CVN 69)on June 28, 2016 in the Mediterranean Sea.

US aircraft carrier returns to Middle East as Suez Canal opens

The USS Eisenhower arrives in the Gulf region as the Biden administration kicks off indirect talks with Iran over its nuclear program.

A handout picture provided by the Iranian presidency on July 7, 2019, shows (L to R) Iran's government spokesman Ali Rabiei and Deputy Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi speaking to each other during a joint press conference at the presidential headquarters in the capital, Tehran, on July 7, 2019. Iran will begin enriching uranium beyond a 3.67% cap set by a landmark nuclear deal "in a few hours," the Islamic Republic's Atomic Energy Organization spokesman Behrouz Kamalvandi said on July 7, 2019.

Iran: no direct or indirect talks with US officials in Vienna

Heading into talks in Vienna on the JCPOA, Tehran maintains its position that Washington must remove sanctions first.