Press TV - A UN rights expert has slammed unilateral US sanctions against Iran, Cuba and Venezuela, saying the use of economic measures for political purposes violates human rights and international law.

In a statement released on Monday, Idriss Jazairy, UN special rapporteur on the negative impact of the unilateral coercive measures, warned that the US bans against the trio might precipitate man-made humanitarian catastrophes.

�Regime change through economic measures likely to lead to the denial of basic human rights and indeed possibly to starvation has never been an accepted practice of international relations,� he said.

�Real concerns and serious political differences between governments must never be resolved by precipitating economic and humanitarian disasters, making ordinary people pawns and hostages thereof,� he added.

Jazairy also voiced worries about Washington�s termination of sanctions waivers�for�major Iranian crude buyers, saying the move harms not only the Iranian nation, but also their trade partners.

�The extraterritorial application of unilateral sanctions is clearly contrary to international law,� he said.
�I am deeply concerned that one State can use its dominant position in international finance to harm not only the Iranian people, who have followed their obligations under the�UN-approved�nuclear deal�to this day, but also everyone in the world who trades with them,� he noted, referring to the landmark 2015 agreement � officially called the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA).
Recently, the US ended six months of waivers which allowed Tehran�s eight largest customers to continue importing limited volumes. It also threatened the buyers of Iranian oil with sanctions if they fail to stop their purchases.

The anti-Iran American sanctions had been lifted under the JCPOA, but they returned in place last year when the US abandoned�the multilateral accord.

Elsewhere in his statement, the UN rights expert denounced the economic hardship caused by the US sanctions in Cuba and questioned Washington�s claim that its sanctions against Venezuela were aimed at �helping� its people.

He further called on the international community to �challenge� Washington�s restrictive measures against sovereign countries which amount to �a threat to world peace and security.�

�I call on the international community to engage in constructive dialogue with Venezuela, Cuba, Iran and the United States to find a peaceful resolution in compliance with the spirit and letter of the Charter of the United Nations before the arbitrary use of economic starvation becomes the new �normal�,� Jazairy said.