Geo World

US slaps sanctions on Syria

WASHINGTON: The United States Friday imposed sanctions and blocked assets of the powerful brother of Syria's President Bashar al-Assad, several other officials and of the country's intelligence services. The move had been promised as Washington seeks to punish Syria for its brutal crackdown on opposition protesters in the latest turmoil as revolution sweeps the Middle East. In an executive order, Obama sanctioned Maher Al-Assad, who commands Syria's feared Fourth Armored Division, Ali Mamluk the director of the Intelligence Directorate, and Atif Najib, the former head of the directorate for Daraa province, where much of the violence is taking place. The Syrian intelligence directorate as a whole and Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, which Washington accused of providing material support to the crackdown, was also named in the sanctions order. The measures block any property in the United States or in the possession or control of Americans belonging to the named individuals and entities and prevents them entering transactions with US individuals. The sanctions were unveiled as tens of thousands of protesters poured onto the streets across Syria following a call for a "day of rage" against the Assad government after weekly Muslim prayers. (AFP)