Protesters who gathered on Schuman Square, in the EU quarter, were seen waving Iranian, American and Israeli flags as well as pictures of exiled Crown Prince Reza Pahlavi who has emerged in the last weeks as the main figure of the Irian opposition.
They marched to the European Parliament which last week condemned Iran’s brutal repression of protesters in a resolution also calling for blacklisting the IRGC.
But despite demands from the parliament, several EU member states, the U.S. and Israel, listing the IRGC as a terrorist group is not among the proposed new sanctions to be on the table of the Foreign Affairs Council on Thursday.
Thousands of people rallied in Brussels on Sunday, calling for international support for the people of Iran in the aftermath of the deadly crackdown on nationwide protests against the mullahs regime.
Protesters, mainly members of the Iranian diaspora, gathered in the EU quarter and were seen waving Iranian, American and Israeli flags as well as pictures of exiled Crown Prince Reza Pahlavi who has emerged in the last weeks as the main figure of the Irian opposition. They also chanted pro-Trump slogans.
The demonstrators denounced “the brutal regime, which is killing people.,” Some reports said more than 20,000 people have been killed by the Iranian regime’s repression forces in the last three weeks.
European Parliament calls for IRGC to be listed as a terrrorist organization
They marched to the European Parliament which last week condemned Iran’s brutal repression of protesters in a resolution adopted during the plenary session in Strasbourg.
In the resolution adopted by 562 votes in favour, 9 against and 57 abstentions, MEPs express alarm that the murder of thousands of protesters signals ‘’a chilling shift in the Iranian regime’s suppression of dissent from deterrence to strategic elimination.’’
MEPs demanded the immediate and unconditional release of all protesters, human rights defenders and journalists currently held under arrest.
They welcomed the recent decision by the EU Parliament’s President Roberta Metsola to bar representatives of the Iranian regime from European Parliament premises and urging member states to follow suit.
The resolution again called on the EU Council to proceed ‘’without delay’’ with the full designation of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), including the Basij militia and the Quds Force, as terrorist organisations.
It demanded the expansion and strict enforcement of EU restrictive measures, including asset freezes and visa bans, welcomed the recent US sanctions, and called for swift EU action against all officials and entities responsible for repression.
No proposal to blacklist IRGC at the Foreign Affairs Council this week
EU Foreign Ministers are to meet on Thursday to discuss proposed further sanctions against the Iranian regime.
But despite demands from several EU member states, the U.S. and Israel, listing the IRGC as a terrorist group is not so far among the proposed new sanctions to be on the table of the Foreign Affairs Council according to a EU high ranking official.
Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani on Monday stated he would be asking the European Union to blacklist the IRGC.
Unanimity is needed to blacklist the IRGC. France and Spain are said to be among the 27-member EU that have so far opposed such a designation.
The EU is to propose sanctions against Iran’s interior minister and 14 other senior officials for their role in a violent crackdown on nationwide protests that erupted in late December, according to a well informed source.
EU foreign affairs chief Kaja Kallas said earlier this month that the EU has already adopted sweeping sanctions on Iran, on those responsible for human rights abuses, nuclear proliferation activities and Iran’s support for Russia’s war in Ukraine.