Warnings from Several Friday Prayer Leaders Regarding the Potential Implementation of 'D'Amato Law Extension'

Several Friday prayer leaders in Iran, supporting the statements of the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Republic, have described the 10-year extension of the 'D'Amato Law' by the U.S. House of Representatives as a violation of the nuclear agreement and warned that if this legislation is implemented, Iran should not have 'any commitments regarding the JCPOA'. According to the state news agency IRNA, Kazem Sedighi, the Friday prayer leader of Tehran, referred to the Supreme Leader's remarks during his sermon on December 5, stating that if this legislation is enacted, Iran will certainly react. In this context, Asadollah Imani, the Friday prayer leader of Shiraz, also mentioned that the Supreme Leader has clarified the role of Iranian diplomats in this matter, stating that if this legislation is implemented, 'Iran should not have any commitments regarding the JCPOA'. Additionally, according to ISNA news agency, Youssef Tabatabai Nejad, the Friday prayer leader of Isfahan, also called this legislation a violation of the Vienna nuclear agreement and questioned, 'What wrong did they do in these 10 years that they would do in the next 10 years?' He added, 'The Supreme Leader says he wishes the sanctions would continue to lead to the advancement of the Iranian nation.' The U.S. House of Representatives has recently extended the D'Amato Law for another 10 years, and Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Republic, has threatened that if this law 'is implemented and operationalized, it will certainly be a violation of the JCPOA,' and the Islamic Republic 'will certainly react to it.' Majid Takht-Ravanchi, Iran's Deputy Foreign Minister for Europe and America, also warned on Thursday, December 4, that if Donald Trump signs the U.S. House of Representatives' bill to extend the 'D'Amato' plan, the Islamic Republic 'will not sit idly by.' However, Islamic Republic officials have not explicitly stated what actions Iran will take if this law is implemented. The D'Amato Law is a law passed by the U.S. government in 1996 to sanction Iran. According to this law, companies that invest more than $40 million in Iran within a year will be barred from trading with the U.S. government. The Obama administration had previously requested that the U.S. Congress delay the extension of this law in light of the nuclear agreement between Iran and world powers. Donald Trump's position on this law is unclear, although he has previously called the nuclear agreement the worst possible deal during his campaign and promised to renegotiate it if he won. In this context, Takht-Ravanchi stated: 'If the U.S. moves towards violating the JCPOA, we will not sit idly by.' Khamenei stated: 'The extension of sanctions against Iran is definitely a violation of the JCPOA.' A proposal by Iranian parliament representatives for sanctions on American goods was also mentioned. The U.S. House of Representatives has extended the 'Iran Sanctions Law' for another ten years.