EU Council Revises Global Human Rights Sanctions Framework

Brussels (Eurotoday) – The European Council extends sanctions against individuals, entities, and groups involved in human rights abuses until December 2025.

The European Council today on 2 Dec 2024 chose to prolong and revise the list of individuals, entities, and groups subject to restrictive measures or sanctions against serious human rights breaches and abuses, for a further year until 8 December 2025.

What is the EU Global Human Rights sanctions regime?

The EU Global Human Rights Sanctions Regime, founded on 7 December 2020, allows the EU to hit individuals, entities and bodies – including state and non-state actors – accountable for, involved in or associated with serious human rights breaches and abuses worldwide. On 4 December 2023, the Council extended the framework for restrictive measures under the Global Human Rights Sanctions Regime for three years, until 8 December 2026. The listings under the regime run out and are examined every 12 months.

According to the EU Council, with the new updates, the restrictive measures currently involve 116 individuals and 33 entities. Those selected are subject to an asset freeze and EU persons and entities are prohibited from making funds, financial assets or economic resources unrestricted to them. In addition, a travel embargo to the EU applies to the natural persons documented.

EU Council states that it is committed to denouncing human rights violations and abuses wherever they happen, making use of all instruments while reasserting that human rights are universal, indivisible, interdependent and interrelated.