Trump signs more sanctions punishing Iran after it shot down a US drone

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Trump signs more sanctions punishing Iran after it shot down a US drone

WASHINGTON, DC - JUNE 20: U.S. President Donald Trump speaks during a meeting with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau in the Oval Office of the White House June 20, 2019 in Washington, DC. The two leaders were expected to discuss the trade agreement between the U.S., Canada and Mexico. (Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images)

Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images

President Donald Trump.

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  • President Donald Trump announced a series of new sanctions on Iranian supreme leader Ali Khamenei and other key officials.
  • The sanctions come in the wake of the Iranian military shooting down a US drone over the Strait of Hormuz.
  • Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin also said additional sanctions targeting Iranian Foreign Minister Java Zarif would be coming later this week.
  • Visit BusinessInsider.com for more stories.

President Donald Trump signed an executive order Monday slapping a host of new sanctions on Iranian supreme leader Ali Khamenei and key officials in the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, delivering a tough response targeted against the Iranian military elements who claimed credit for downing a US drone Thursday.

The sanctions are meant to "deny the Supreme Leader and the Supreme Leader's office and those closely affiliated with him and the office access to key financial resources," according to Trump.

Read more: Trump called Iran's drone attack 'a mistake,' but a top Iranian general called it 'a clear message' to the US

"I think a lot of restraint has been shown by us - a lot of restraint - and that doesn't mean we're going to show it in the future," Trump told reporters in the Oval Office. "Today's action follows a series of aggressive behaviors by the Iranian regime in recent weeks including shooting down of U.S. drones."

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Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin briefed reporters on the new sanctions as well, pushing back on assertions they are purely symbolic.

"For the people who say these are just symbolic that's not the case at all," he said. "We've literally locked up tens and tens of billions of dollars. These sanctions will come along with additional entities where people are hiding money. So no, these sanctions are highly effective."

Mnuchin also noted that sanctions would be coming later in the week to directly target Iran Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif.

Read more: Trump says he called off Iran strike 10 minutes before it was supposed to happen because he was told 150 people would die

The sanctions come after the Iranian military shot down a US military drone over the Strait of Hormuz on Thursday. The sanctions target leaders in the IRGC the US believes are directly responsible for the incident.

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The ongoing tensions between the US and Iran have also led to fears that war could soon break out, though the Trump administration so far has resorted to cyber attacks and increased sanctions.

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