Senate Passes New Iran Sanctions Bill 98-2
Graphic by Angelie Zaslavsky
(JTA) — The U.S. Senate overwhelmingly passed a bill that would impose new sanctions on Iran.
The measure adding sanctions on Iran due to its ballistic missile program, support for terrorism and human rights breaches passed Thursday in a 98-2 vote. It complies with the Iran nuclear agreement reached in 2015, which put restrictions on the country’s nuclear program in exchange for sanctions relief.
The bill must now pass in the House of Representatives and be signed by President Trump before being enacted. Only Sens. Bernie Sanders and Rand Paul voted against it.
A day earlier, the Senate voted to adopt an amendment to the bill that would expand sanctions against Russia, CBS News reported.
The American Jewish Committee praised the bill’s passage.
“Iran’s ballistic missile program, the regime’s support for international terrorism, and its blatant and egregious human rights violations should not be ignored,” the group’s associate executive director for policy, Jason Isaacson, said in a statement. “This bill demonstrates to the Iranian regime that they will not be tolerated.”
Christians United for Israel also lauded the measure, calling it a “good first step.”
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