TEHRAN - Foreign Ministry spokesman Abbas Mousavi on Friday condemned new sanctions of the United States on Syria and urged removal of them.

Mousavi described the action as illegal which runs contrary to humanitarian principles.

“Harms and negative consequences of such sanctions target the ordinary people,” he said.

The Syrian government condemned Wednesday a new wave of the U.S. sanctions against the country, calling the measures “economic terrorism” that will increase the suffering of the Syrian people, according to AP.

On Wednesday, an unnamed source with the Syrian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates denounced the so-called Caesar Syria Civilian Protection Act – also known as the Caesar Act and expected to come into force in mid-June – as another form of terrorism which has shed the blood of Syrian civilians and ravaged their achievements, Syria’s official news agency SANA reported.

“The Syrian Arab Republic strongly condemns the imposition of further sanctions on it by the U.S. administration through the so-called Caesar Act. The sanctions are based on a bunch of lies and fabricated claims by parties hostile to the Syrian nation. This falls within the framework of their declared war that uses various methods, including terrorism, economic blockade, political pressure and smear campaign,” the source added.

He highlighted that the Caesar sanctions act, which aims to sanction any party that assists the Syrian government, is a flagrant violation of the most basic principles of human rights and international law.

By imposing these restrictions, the U.S. administration will “bear main responsibility for the suffering of the Syrian people when it comes to their livelihoods,” the source added.

NA/PA