US bill aims to block sanctioned Iran officials from UN
Senator Ted Cruz introduced a bill on Thursday to stop sanctioned Iranian officials from entering the United States for next week’s United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) meeting in New York.
Senator Ted Cruz introduced a bill on Thursday to stop sanctioned Iranian officials from entering the United States for next week’s United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) meeting in New York.
The bill, called the “Strengthening Entry Visa Enforcement and Restrictions (SEVER) Act,” was introduced by the Republican senator from Texas.
The bill focuses on officials it says are linked to Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
There was no immediate indication that such personnel were due to attend. Iran routinely sends scores of officials and staff to the annual meeting.
“The Iranian regime and the corrupt officials who run it are responsible for the murder, injury and kidnapping of thousands of Americans,” The Hill cited Cruz as saying.
“The Ayatollah means it when he chants ‘Death to America,’ and the United States has developed and imposed sanctions to counter the threats posed by him and those directly around him,” Cruz said.
The bill was initially introduced under the same name in 2022 but stalled due to lack of votes and political disagreements.
The current bill has new Republican sponsors, including Senators Tom Cotton, John Barrasso, Ashley Moody, Rick Scott and Joni Ernst.
Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian and Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi are set to attend UNGA’s high-level meetings starting September 22 in New York.
A companion version of the SEVER Act was also introduced in the House of Representatives by New York Republican Representative Claudia Tenney.
The 80th session of the UN General Assembly opened on September 9, with world leaders due to arrive in New York on September 22.
The 1947 UN Headquarters Agreement requires the United States to grant visas to UN representatives, including world leaders, for UN-related activities in New York, with exceptions only for proven security threats.
The United States is considering special travel restrictions for the 2025 Iranian UNGA delegation, including State Department approval for shopping at Costco or Sam’s Club and limits on movement outside New York City.
Washington earlier this month revoked or denied visas for most Palestinian officials to attend the UNGA, in a move seen as a protest about Western allies' looming move to recognize a Palestinian state.
“Some of the accusations are at the level of spreading corruption on earth, and if the court proves them, his punishment will be execution,” Kamran Ghazanfari said in an interview with Iran24, referring to a formal charge in the theocracy's law.
“He has already inflicted enough damage and loss on the country. One example is the nuclear deal, which was entirely a loss. He took pride in it.”
The remarks suggest increasing tension within Iran's ruling establishment as geopolitical uncertainty festers following a 12-day war with Israel in June, new international sanctions loom and economic hardship bites.
Ghazanfari said the previous parliament filed eight complaints against Rouhani which were all forwarded to the judiciary. He accused judiciary chief Gholamhossein Mohseni Ejei of failing to act, despite a legal obligation to give such cases priority.
“Was Rouhani tried? Was he punished or not? If so, explain. If not, explain why he has not been tried and punished.”
Ghazanfari also referred to another case sent to the judiciary by late President Ebrahim Raisi’s government, accusing Rouhani of involvement in the disappearance of 48 valuable carpets from the Saadabad Palace.
Rouhani’s office at the time rejected the allegation as a political distraction.
Criticism of nuclear deal
Ghazanfari again attacked the nuclear agreement, calling it “entirely a loss.”
“Rouhani should remain silent, rest at home, and not enter such matters,” he said, arguing that when no legal action is taken “He dares to talk big.”
His comments come as Britain, France, and Germany have triggered the nuclear deal’s snapback mechanism against Iran. Western governments have set conditions, including granting the International Atomic Energy Agency access to enriched uranium stockpiles, with a deadline at the end of September.
Under Resolution 2231, sanctions will automatically return after 30 days unless the Security Council votes otherwise.
Rouhani defends dialogue
Rouhani has re-emerged in recent weeks to call for reducing confrontation with the West, including the United States.
“Relations with Europe, our neighbors, and the East and the West, even tension with the US, if we can reduce it, if it is in our national interest, what is wrong with that? Not only is it not wrong, but it is also our duty and obligation,” he told advisers in late August.
Rouhani argued that Iran should pursue talks if they advance national interests and security. In comments on August 14, he described negotiations with the United States as necessary and obligatory.
His remarks was in apparent conflict with the supreme leader's position who on the same day warned against advocating talks with Washington. “Agents of America and Zionism sought to create division inside Iran,” Khamenei said.
In a letter to the Academy this week, the Iranian Independent Filmmakers Association (IIFMA) said the Farabi Cinema Foundation, which oversees Oscar submissions from Iran, enforces censorship and sidelines independent voices at home and abroad.
The group proposed an international committee that could select Iranian films free of government influence, citing the cultural impact of the Woman, Life, Freedom protest movement.
The appeal came a day after Iran announced Ali Zarnegar’s Cause of Death: Unknown as its entry for the 98th Academy Awards.
The selection drew mixed reactions inside Iran, with the hardline daily Javan urging officials to choose a film that reflected “Islamic-Iranian values,” while veteran filmmaker Homayoun Asadian accused state authorities of trying to dictate the choice.
IIFMA argued that acclaimed works such as Jafar Panahi’s Palme d’Or-winning It Was Just an Accident -- which France has submitted this year -- demonstrate the global recognition of Iranian filmmakers when free of state oversight.
Panahi has long been barred from representing Iran, and supporters say his case highlights how government involvement excludes major artists.
Iran has a history of success at the Oscars, with Asghar Farhadi winning best international feature for A Separation (2012) and The Salesman (2017).
"This reprogramming action provides funding for the replacement of defense articles from the stocks of the Department of Defense expended in support of Israel or identified and notified to Congress for provision to Israel," the document said.
The budget document dated August 1, is titled Israel Security Replacement Transfer Fund Tranche 9, and requested $498.265 million in funding for THAAD systems alone.
“Funds are required for the procurement of replacement THAAD Interceptors expended in support of Israel. This is a congressional special interest item. This is an emergency budget requirement,” the document said.
The War Zone reported that the US fired more than 150 THAAD missiles during the Iran war alone.
The publication also said details of US bombings of Iranian nuclear facilities, known as Operation Midnight Hammer, are only just coming to light now, though the full cost is still unknown.
The US announced it had deployed THAAD defences in Israel in October, more than a year after the Gaza war broke out, seeing Iran's allies in the region firing on the Jewish state from Lebanon, Yemen, Iraq and Syria.
It also came after Iran's second direct attack on Israel when hundreds of missiles and drones were fired in a massive aerial barrage.
"This reprogramming action addresses funds for the replacement of defense articles expended in support of Israel through US combat operations executed at the request of and in coordination with Israel and for the defense of Israeli territory, personnel, or assets during attacks by Iran, and subsequent or anticipated attacks by Iran and its proxies," the document said.
The documents show the extent of the cost of the US military's defense of Israel and also the cost of weapons that American forces used during their extensive bombing of Iran’s three main nuclear facilities in June, Natanz, Fordow and Isfahan.
Among the funds requested were those to "replace GBU-39s expended during Operation Midnight Hammer in support of Israel", the document detailed. "This is a congressional special interest item. This is an emergency budget requirement."
Made by US defense contractor, Lockheed Martin, THADD intercepts short, medium and intermediate-range ballistic missiles, engaging targets directly at ranges of 93 to 124 miles both inside and outside the atmosphere.
Each THAAD battery system requires around 100 soldiers, and has been used to help defend Israel from ballistic missiles from both Iran and its military ally, the Houthis, in Yemen.
US Missile Defense Agency documents say that each THAAD interceptor costs roughly $12.7 million, and now there are concerns about insufficient American stockpiles.
In addition to Iranian attacks, Israel says dozens of drones and ballistic missiles have been fired from Yemen to Israel since the outbreak of the Gaza war. The Iran-backed Houthis say their actions are in allegiance with Iran’s ally Hamas in Gaza.
During the 12-day war in June, Iran fired over 500 ballistic missiles in response to Israel’s surprise attacks on June 13, in which dozens of military and nuclear figures were killed.
