By Xinhua

TEHRAN, Oct. 6 (Xinhua) -- An Iranian lawmaker said the " illegal" sanctions imposed on Iran by those countries that claim to advocate human rights target the middle-class people in a blatant violation of human rights, Press TV reported on Saturday.

"The (so-called) advocates of human rights have proven the West 's double standards regarding the concept of human rights by imposing illegal sanctions on the Iranian people," spokesman for Iran Majlis (parliament) Legal and Judicial Commission, Mohammad- Ali Esfanani, was quoted as saying on Saturday.

Major powers define the human rights based on their own interests and needs and justify their "anti-human" measures through instrumental use of human rights, said Esfanani.

He noted that the enemies put extra economic pressure on the Iranian nation after they failed to defeat the resistance of the Iranian people and government against their plots.

The UN Security Council imposed four rounds of sanctions on Iran between 2006 and 2010 over its refusal to halt its nuclear enrichment program, which Western countries suspect could be used to develop nuclear weapons.

The United States and European Union have imposed and expanded sanctions of their own over the years despite Tehran's insistence on the peaceful nature of its nuclear program.

 

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