Australia imposes new sanctions on Iran over crackdown on protests

The Australian government has announced new sanctions targeting 20 individuals and three entities in Iran in response to the violent suppression of protests in the country.

Foreign Minister Penny Wong stated that the sanctions list includes senior members of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), who are “complicit in oppressing the Iranian people, violently suppressing domestic protests, and threatening lives both inside and outside Iran.”

The minister also noted that Australia had previously designated the IRGC as a state sponsor of terrorism and had already imposed sanctions on more than 300 Iranian individuals and entities.

Mass demonstrations in Iran began on December 28, 2025, after a steep collapse of the Iranian rial and soaring inflation, which fueled widespread discontent over deteriorating living conditions. The unrest quickly spread to all provinces of the country, with shopkeepers, students and other citizens participating in strikes and marches.

While the initial spark was economic — especially record inflation and devaluation of the currency — the protests rapidly evolved into a wider challenge to the Islamic Republic’s political system, with many demonstrators demanding political change and voicing anti‑regime slogans.

Iranian authorities, including the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and police, responded with a forceful crackdown, using tear gas, water cannon, and firearms to disperse crowds. Internet and mobile communications were restricted at times as officials sought to limit coverage of the unrest.

Human rights groups and independent monitors report tens of thousands of deaths and hundreds of thousands of injuries among protesters. State figures have acknowledged thousands of fatalities, while some external estimates suggest the toll may be significantly higher.

The U.S.-based Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA) has verified at least 42,486 arrests in the unrest.

Certain right groups and media sources place total arrests at 47,000 nationwide.

By Khagan Isayev