The United States on Wednesday imposed sanctions on 39 individuals and entities including Syrian President Bashar Assad and his wife Asma to choke off revenue for his government in a bid to push it back to United Nations-led negotiations.
In a statement announcing the designations imposed under the Caesar Syria Civilian Protection Act, enacted by US President Donald Trump in December, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said "many more" sanctions against Assad government should be expected in the coming weeks and months.
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Also on the sanctions list is the First Division of the Syrian Arab Army, as per the statement posted on the State Department website.
"The Assad regime's military has become a symbol of brutality, repression, and corruption," Pompeo said in a statement. "They have killed hundreds of thousands of civilians, detained and tortured peaceful protesters, and destroyed schools, hospitals, and markets without regard to human life."
Sanctions are "the only credible path to the peace the Syrian people deserve," Pompeo asserted in a tweet.
The Caesar Act, formally known as the Caesar Syria Civilian Protection Act, aims to punish the Syrian regime over its human rights violations.
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