- Iranians holding Ashura mourning for Imam Hussein
- Third step: Iran officially informs EU of plan to expand nuclear R&D
- Iran expands nuclear R&D program: Rouhani
- Iran goes ahead in space tech, despite US sanctions: ISA
- Resistance Front undermining Israeli regime power: Top commander
- Iran: 7 crew members of detained UK ship freed
- US addiction to sanction threaten its power: Iran’s Zarif
- Dutch role in 2007 Stuxnet attack on Iran’s nuclear site under scrutiny: Iraian FM Spox.
- Iran: ‘Sustainable Security 2019’ kicks off in Caspian Sea
- Iran’s Zarif leaves Tehran for Moscow
- Shiraz University ranked 1st in liver transplantation: Iranian health official
- Japan’s Abe to meet Iran’s president to discuss easing tension in region
- Downing of US spy drone shattered war threats against Iran: Top IRGC commander
- IAEO head reports development of first ion-therapy hospital in west of Asia
- Iranian Taekwondo team wins 2019 World Cup championship
- US sanctions failed to force Iran to buckle: Report
- Crew fixing Iran oil tanker broken down in Red Sea
- As Iranians hold nerves, US seeks to scare off trade
- Leader expresses concern about Kashmir, urges India to follow fair policy toward Muslim-majority region
- Iran saffron exports down due to smuggling, government restrictions: Exporter
- Iran FM warns US against ‘serious miscalculation’ in Persian Gulf
- Iran’s resistance policy led to release of oil tanker: MP
- Iran in reverse brain drain as top students come home in rising numbers
- Iran official calls for compensation for tanker seizure
- Iran hails N Korea for standing against ‘unilateral’ US demands
- Shia Muslims celebrate Eid Al-Ghadir
- North Korea praises Iran’s anti-US struggle
- Zarif says to meet French president Friday
- Iranian court hearing case of UK oil tanker
- Over half of Japanese voters oppose joining US-led anti-Iran coalition in Persian Gulf: Poll
- IME trade ups by 21 percent in July
- Finland backs INSTEX in defiance of US
- US anti-Iran policy in high seas harms Europeans: LA Times
- Iran, China confer on Syria
- Iran, Finland share views on Persian Gulf dialogue forum: Zarif
- Iran warns US against seizure of oil tanker
- Iraq eager to benefit from Iranian Police’s experience
- Iran planning 3rd step to reduce nuclear commitments: Spokesman
- Leader grants clemency to over 1,000 Iranian inmates
- Registration for Arbaeen Pilgrimage to begin in Iran on Friday
- Iran, Iraq agree to reopen Khosravi border crossing
- Iran deplores suicide attack at Kabul wedding hall
- Iran to hold int'l hand-woven carpets expo
- Zarif meets with Iran-Kuwait Friendship Group members
- Adrian Darya oil tanker not under any sanctions, says Iran envoy
- ‘Iran to stay in nuclear deal as long as its interests are met’
- India envoy happy with positive trend of trade with Iran
- Iran’s annual export of white meat tops 2.5m tons: Minister
- Iranian scientist discovers new state of matter
- Iran, Japan diplomats discuss bilateral ties
- Iran, Ansarullah, European representatives Yemen developments
- ‘Iran to become self-sufficient in producing aircraft engines'
- US issues seizure warrant for Iranian supertanker 'Grace 1'
- Neanderthal tooth unearthed near Iran’s Zagros mountain
- Iran’s Zarif due in Kuwait on Saturday
- US faces humiliating defeat after Gibraltar releases Iranian tanker: Envoy
- Spokesman rejects claim on Iran’s commitment in exchange for tanker release
- Zarif reacts to release of Iranian tanker in Gibraltar
- Israel, UAE engaged in secret talks on Iran arranged by US: Report
- US threatens visa ban as Iranian-operated tanker sets to sail from Gibraltar
- Enemies must factor Iran's global power in their calculations: IRGC's chief commander
- Trump’s administration conflicting messages to Iran baffle go-betweens: Report
- Gibraltar releases Iran-operated tanker despite US pressure
An Iranian lawmaker called Trump’s decision to impose visa ban on Iranians ‘racial discrimination’.
"No doubt that the move is return of the US to the Middle Ages and racial, religious and ethnic discrimination. The move will naturally damage the US dignity and runs counter to the US claims on abiding by democracy, freedom of information and interactions among countries,” said Spokesman of Iranian Parliament National Security and Foreign Policy Commission Hossein Naghavi-Hosseini.He said it is not still clear that Trump wants to sign out the order or it is just a suggestion which needs legal approval and Congress agreement.
The Iranian lawmaker said visa ban on Muslims is an apparent example of racial and religious discrimination.
In a tweet late on Tuesday, Trump said he was poised to sign executive orders to ban for several months the entry of refugees into the US.
Another order will block visas being issued to anyone from seven Middle Eastern and North African countries of Iraq, Syria, Libya, Yemen, Sudan, Somalia and Iran.
Trump, a vocal supporter of the regime in Israel, has adopted harsh rhetoric against Iran. During his election campaign, he vowed to "tear up” or try to renegotiate the landmark nuclear deal inked in 2015 between Iran and the P5+1 group of countries, including the US.
Trump’s threats come as earlier this month, the European Union, whose foreign policy chief chaired the P5+1 during the negotiations in the run-up to the deal, renewed its support for the accord, viewed as a win for international diplomacy.
If imposed, the visa ban would be the latest in a series of anti-Iran measures taken by the US government in recent months.
Last year, Washington extended sanctions against Iran in what was viewed as a breach of the 2015 nuclear deal, known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA).
On December 1, 2016, the US Senate voted 99-0 to extend the Iran Sanctions Act (ISA) for a decade after it cleared the House of Representatives 419-1 in late November.
The House of Representatives voted to reauthorize ISA, which was first introduced in 1996 to punish investments in Iran's energy industry based on accusations that Tehran was pursuing non-civilian objectives in its nuclear energy program.
The administration of former US President Barack Obama had expressed reservations about the utility of the legislation, but congressional aides said they expected Obama
would sign it when it reached his desk. The act was set to expire at the end of 2016.
Obama had declined to sign a bill renewing existing sanctions against Iran, but allowed the legislation to become law, in an apparent effort to alleviate the Islamic Republic’s concerns that Washington is backtracking on the nuclear agreement.
Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Bob Corker, a hawkish Republican from Tennessee, said at that time that the extension of ISA ensures President-elect Donald Trump can reimpose sanctions Obama lifted under the nuclear agreement.
"Extending the Iran Sanctions Act ... ensures President-elect Trump and his administration have the tools necessary to push back” against Iran’s "hostile actions,” he said in a statement.
Iran has warned that the renewal of sanctions will be a violation of commitments under the JCPOA, and has threatened reprisal if the US extends the longstanding act.
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