Senate passes enhanced Iran sanctions

WASHINGTON (JTA) – The U.S. Senate, urged by AIPAC and over Obama administration objections, unanimously approved tightened Iran sanctions. 


"Iran in turn has used these precious metals to circumvent financial sanctions, using them to barter for goods," said the AIPAC letter to senators. "The Menendez-Kirk-Lieberman amendment would close this loophole, without impacting humanitarian trade."



"As we focus with our partners on effectively implementing these efforts, we believe additional authorities now threaten to undercut these efforts," Tommy Vietor, the national security spokesman, told The Cable. "We also have concerns with some of the formulations as currently drafted in the text and want to work through them with our congressional partners to make the law more effective and consistent with the current sanctions law to ensure we don’t undercut our success to date."


"America must continue to lead the international effort to stop Iran’s illicit nuclear pursuit," it said in a statement. "AIPAC urges the immediate implementation of the new sanctions." 

