UK sanctions allies of Syrian President Assad, freezes assets

Britain on Monday announced sanctions, freezing the assets of six allies of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, including his foreign minister and close advisers.

Those sanctioned include Foreign Minister Faisal Miqdad, Assad adviser Luna al-Shibl, financier Yassar Ibrahim, businessman Muhammad Bara’ Al-Qatirji, Republican Guard commander Malik Aliaa and Army Major Zaid Salah.

The Syrian civil war is 10 years old: In mid-March, 2011, peaceful pro-democracy protests developed into a multi-sided conflict that sucked in world powers, killed hundreds of thousands of people and displaced millions more.

“The Assad regime has subjected the Syrian people to a decade of brutality for the temerity of demanding peaceful reform,” Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab said.

“We are holding six more individuals from the regime to account for their wholesale assault on the very citizens they should be protecting,” Raab said.

There are already more than 350 sanctions listings in place related to the decade-long conflict in Syria.