The EU on Monday said it was ready to impose "harsher" sanctions on Iran over the government's response to protests, during which hundreds of people have been killed.
The bloc is prepared to propose "new, harsher, sanctions following the violent repression of protesters" across Iran, European Commission spokesman Anouar El Anouni said at a media briefing in Brussels, responding to a question from The National.
"This is a decision that member states must take unanimously, as with any policy regarding EU sanctions," Mr El Anouni added.
The EU's foreign affairs minister, Kaja Kallas, said at the weekend that she was open to the option of additional sanctions for Tehran. She criticised "a heavy-handed response by the security forces" in the country.
The mass protests across Iran − sparked by a currency crisis and economic collapse, but increasingly aimed at the ruling clerical class − have become one of the most serious challenges to the Islamic Republic since 1979. They have led to demonstrations aimed at showing solidarity in European capitals, including Paris, where more than 2,000 people gathered on Sunday.
There have been more than 540 deaths in the protests and more than 10,000 arrests, said the Human Rights Activist News Agency, which is tracking protests in 186 cities across Iran’s 31 provinces.
Communication remains largely cut off, making it difficult to track the extent of the protest movement. Videos have emerged on social media showing rows of bodies in body bags outside health centres.
The EU remains in contact with Iranian authorities through its embassy in Tehran, Mr El Anouni said. He declined to clarify whether the bloc was in contact with Reza Pahlavi, the exiled son of Iran's former Shah. His name has been chanted by Iranian protesters.
Mr Pahlavi, 65, is trying to position himself as a vital figure in his homeland's future. He has lived in the US since he was 17.
Brussels has issued a series of sanctions against Tehran for human rights breaches, nuclear activities and the sale of drones to Russia to use in its war against Ukraine.
An extraordinary meeting of the EU's 27 ambassadors in Brussels on the situation in Iran is scheduled to take place on Tuesday. The hardening of the bloc's position comes after numerous statements of support for protesters from European leaders.
Speaking during a visit to India on Monday, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz described Iran’s “disproportionate and brutal” violence against protesters as “a sign of weakness". He added that Germany condemns the violence "in the strongest possible terms".
On Friday, leaders of France, Germany and the UK – the so-called E3 – said they were “deeply concerned about reports of violence by Iranian security forces and strongly condemn the killing of protesters”. At the weekend, EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said that “Europe stands fully behind" the demonstrators in Iran.
Relations between Iran and the E3 soured after UN sanctions against Tehran were reinstated in September. Iran was weakened by the 12-day war in June, when its nuclear sites were bombed by Israel and the US.
The US is considering its response to the protests, President Donald Trump has said. Options include military strikes, cyber weapons and more sanctions on Tehran, The Wall Street Journal reported.
