According to a statement by the Iranian Foreign Ministry, those affected by the sanctions are accused of "supporting terrorism, interfering in the country's internal affairs and inciting violence and unrest in Iran". Several armaments companies and members of the EU Parliament and national parliaments are also on the sanctions list. They were all subject to asset and entry bans.

On Monday, the EU foreign ministers tightened their sanctions against Tehran because of the ongoing violence against demonstrators in Iran. They placed 32 other Iranian leaders and two organizations with property and entry bans. The EU holds those affected responsible, among other things, for the suppression of freedom of expression and the recent series of executions in Iran.

Human rights activists have counted a total of 55 executions in Iran since the beginning of the year, four of them in connection with the anti-government protests since September. The demonstrations were triggered by the death of 22-year-old Kurd Mahsa Amini. She died after being arrested by the vice squad for allegedly violating the strict Islamic dress code. Hundreds of people were killed and thousands arrested during the protests.

The already tense relations between Tehran and the West were additionally strained by two verdicts pronounced in Iran on Tuesday: the German-Iranian Jamshid Sharmahd was sentenced to death on charges of terrorism, and an Austrian was sentenced to seven and a half years in prison in another trial for espionage.