The Syrian Opposition Coalition’s (SOC) Caesar Act Follow-up Team on Friday convened to discuss the new batch of sanctions the United States imposed against individuals with close ties to the Assad regime.
The announcement of the new sanctions coincided with the seventh anniversary of the Assad regime’s chemical attack in eastern Ghouta, which claimed the lives of 1,461 civilians, including 437 women and children.
Coordinator of the Team Abdul Majeed Barakat said that the timing of the sanctions gives them a political dimension and serves as reminder that the regime’s atrocities against civilians will not be forgotten.
Barakat pointed out that the sanctions targeted political, military, and media figures who have a significant impact on the Assad regime’s behavior, especially with regard to its disruption of the political process and violations of the Idlib ceasefire. He stressed that the sanctions target the structure and core of the regime by including senior Baath Party officials.
Barakat pointed out that in the latest meeting with the group responsible for implementing the Caesar Act in the US administration, the Team emphasized the importance of coordination between Washington and regional as well as international actors in order to take similar steps.
He stressed the importance of focusing on the economic officials that the regime relies on to dodge sanctions.
Barakat once again expressed the SOC’s deep concern that the Assad regime would make civilians bear the consequences of sanctions, pointing out that the regime will blame sanctions for its mismanagement of the country’s resources and handing them over to the Russians and Iranians. (Source: SOC’s Media Department)
