The Council of the EU (the “Council“) today extended restrictive measures against Syria until 1 June 2017 in line with their conclusions of December 2014 in which it was affirmed that the EU would continue to impose and enforce sanctions for as long as the regime’s repression continued.  The EU implementing legislation is likely to be published in tomorrow’s edition of the Official Journal of the European Union.

On Friday 29 May 2015, the EU published Council Regulation (EU) 2015/828, which designates General Muhamad, the head of the Syrian Military Intelligence since April 2015. The stated reason for his designation is because he is “responsible for repression and violence against the civilian population in Damascus/ Damascus countryside”. The Regulation also removes a Rustum Ghazali from the list. The full identifiers and reasons for designations are available on HMT’s full designated party list…

The European Council has just announced that it has extended its sanctions regime against the “sponsors of the Syrian regime” for another year as the situation on-the-ground continues to deteriorate, and it has designated a further individual.  The individual is stated to be a “high-ranking military official deemed responsible for repression and violence against the civilian population in Damascus and Damascus countryside”.  This brings the total number of persons designated under the EU’s sanctions regime against Syria…