227 of the 290 members of the Iranian parliament have called on the Iranian judiciary to impose harsh penalties on protesters – including the death penalty. There can only be one response to this from the EU: targeted sanctions against these 227 individuals and those responsible in the Iranian regime.

In plenary last week, it was said that a plenary debate on this issue would need to be postponed because neither the Foreign Policy Chief nor representatives of the Council could be present that day. In my opinion, this was not justifiable – especially taking into account the fact that the Foreign Affairs Council was at the very same time preparing a sanctions package targeting only 29 individuals. This is why I called on Parliament to hold the Iran debate on the same day – which is what happened. This is an important signal towards the courageous protesters on the streets of Iran. You can watch my speech in the video below.

The Iran debate was put on the plenary agenda that same evening. In preparation for my plenary speech, I had asked Iranians on Twitter: “What would a world without the so-called ‘Islamic regime’ look like?” The answers were many and varied:

“I could use my real name on Twitter.”

“I could walk the streets without fear of being beaten up.”

“I could finally go back to my home country and hug my old mother.”

… to just name a few.

It is not our job to change the regime in Iran. But it is our job to stand in solidarity with and to support the protesters who are taking to the streets fighting for freedom and their fundamental rights. The EU must sanction all 227 members of parliament who have called for the death penalty for protesters. We must call the Iranian Revolutionary Guards what they are: a terror organization.

Update

Last Monday’s Council decision is an important step, but I am advocating for further targeted sanctions against all those responsible.

You can watch my entire plenary speech here: