Report: US to lift sanctions from Iran. Netanyahu: Bennett and Lapid must act

Israel National News

The United States intends to remove as early as next week the sanctions imposed over the years on dozens of Iranian individuals and institutions involved in terrorism and missile development, Channel 12 News reported on Wednesday. The question that is now being discussed is whether the sanctions over the Revolutionary Guards will also be lifted.

According to the report, which cited former special advisor for Iran at the State Department Gabriel Noronha, among the sanctions that will be lifted are those that have been imposed on all the major economic institutions subordinate to Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, and the possibility of removing the sanctions from the Revolutionary Guards has also been discussed.

The head of the US delegation, Robert Malley, has already agreed to waive the sanctions imposed on General Hossein Dehghan, who was behind the 1983 bombing of the US Marine Corps in Beirut, which claimed the lives of 241 US troops. Among the dozens of officials from whom sanctions will be lifted are those responsible for the 1994 bombing of the offices of the Jewish community in Buenos Aires, Argentina.

Sanctions on Khamenei’s senior political adviser Ali Akbar Velayati, who is considered the spiritual teacher of the Iranian terrorist establishment, will also be lifted, according to Channel 12 News. Noronha’s sources said the agreement could be signed as early as next week, despite the war in Ukraine.

Former Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in response, “Bennett and Lapid are saying nothing and doing nothing while Iran is rushing towards a terrible nuclear deal that endangers the security and future of the State of Israel. This bad deal will give Iran money for terrorism against us from the north and the south, and international legitimization for an arsenal of nuclear bombs against all Israeli citizens. We must act against Iran with all our might – and immediately.”

Defense Minister Benny Gantz said on Wednesday evening, “In the coming weeks, perhaps even in the coming days, a nuclear agreement may be signed between the powers and Iran. Whether that happens or not – Israel will continue to do whatever it takes to prevent Iran from becoming an existential threat and possessing nuclear capability. We will continue our political activity because Iran is first and foremost a global and regional problem, and we will continue to build our military force. All means are valid.”

“Even if an agreement is signed, we will never stop operating in the political channel with the aim of tightening control over Iran, and work towards real and painful actions against any violation and progress in nuclear development,” he added.

“Next week, the Board of Governors of the International Atomic Energy Agency will convene – where Iran’s violations will be exposed again. We, and the entire world, will not look away. Even if an agreement is signed – we will not give up on making sure that Iran does not return to the enrichment and development of nuclear military capability – not in 2026, not in 2031. Never,” Gantz clarified.