Eu Court Upholds Sanctions On Assad's Uncle

EU sanctions against a wealthy uncle of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad have been upheld by the bloc's General Court.



The court on Wednesday dismissed Mohammad Makhlouf's request to removed from a sanctions list, which names Syrian leaders banned from entering the EU and whose assets are frozen within the 28-nation bloc.



The court explained its decision in a press release, saying the EU's main decision-making body, the Council of the EU, had "succeeded in proving that Mr Makhlouf is a member of the ruling economic class in Syria and it cannot be denied that he maintains links with the regime and has a decisive influence, as a principal adviser, over all the primary circle of rulers of the Syrian regime".



The General Court added that it found the Council had not infringed Makhlouf's fundamental rights, including his claim that his right to privacy had been breached, as "the right to privacy is not intended to protect the individual against a loss of his purchasing power".



Makhlouf has been on the sanctions list since 2011.



Sanctions on Assad and his close circles were imposed by the European bloc in May 2011 when the Syrian regime began launched a crackdown on protesters.



The Council of the EU also imposed sanctions against 16 people in the Assad regime on Oct. 21, 2014 and two companies which supply oil to the Syrian government.



www.aa.com.tr/en - Brüksel