Switzerland has extended sanctions against the Syrian regime to include the mother and wife of President Bashar al-Assad.
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The State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (Seco) said on Monday it had added a number of people to the list of those sanctioned to include key personalities close to the regime.
Along with Assad’s wife Asma and mother Anisa, his sister Bushra and sister-in-law Manal – wife of younger brother Maher who heads the Republican Guard – have also been targeted with sanctions.
The Swiss sanctions, which will see assets frozen and a restriction on travel to Switzerland, are in line with those imposed by the European Union a month ago.
In total, 127 people and 40 businesses are subject to Swiss sanctions intended to add pressure to the Syrian regime as it pursues a bloody repression of anti-government protesters.
Thirteen months of violence have left more than 9,000 people dead, according to the United Nations.
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