EU upholds Assad uncle sanctions
Judges in the European Union uphold EU sanctions against Mohammad Makhlouf, an uncle of Assad, dismissing his request to be removed from a list of Syrian figures banned from entering the EU and whose assets in the bloc are frozen. The court dismisses an argument that the sanctions breached ‘s right to privacy on the grounds that it prevents him from maintaining his family’s standard of living.
The Council has 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 and, in particular, over his sons…The right to privacy is not intended to protect the individual against a loss of his purchasing power,