UN rights expert calls for lifting of sanctions on Iran

A United Nations human rights expert today called for an immediate lifting of sanctions and "unilateral coercive measures" on Iran which he said had an "adverse impact" on Iranian people's right to food, health and development.
UN Special Rapporteur on human rights and international sanctions, Idriss Jazairy, welcomed the nuclear agreement reached between Iran and the group of P5+1 -- China, France, Russia, the United Kingdom, the United States and Germany -- earlier today.
"In addition to international sanctions authorised by UN Security Council resolutions, Iran has been subjected for years to a range of additional, unilateral coercive measures decided by a number of States individually or in the framework of various regional organisations."

"The stockpiling of sanctions and unilateral coercive measures against Iran, some of which went well beyond what was required by the Security Council, has had a significant adverse effect on the country's economy, its population and ultimately on the enjoyment of human rights of the people of Iran, including its right to food, its right to health and its right to development," the expert said in a press statement.
Jazairy is the first Special Rapporteur on the negative impact of the unilateral coercive measures on the enjoyment of human rights and was appointed by the UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC) in May this year.

The UNHRC established the mandate of the Special Rapporteur in September 2014 in response to increasing concern over the negative impact of sanctions, including unilateral coercive measures, particularly their negative impact on the civilian population.

The independent expert asked all countries which have imposed coercive measures on Iran to lift them promptly and with immediate effect, in line with the commitment contained in the agreement to comprehensively lift UN Security Council multilateral and national nuclear-related sanctions, including steps on access in areas of trade, technology, finance, and energy.
The Special Rapporteur said that the "indiscriminate character" of measures such as the ban on the use of international interbank financial telecommunications, or of measures had the effect of impeding access to medicine and medical treatment.

The deal on Iran's nuclear programme was the fruition of 20 months of negotiations by the P5+1 countries and 18 days of intensive final talks in Vienna.
US President Barack Obama said in a televised address that sanctions relief would be gradual with an arms embargo remaining in place for five years and an embargo on missiles for eight years.