New sanctions target Syria, Iran and Hezbollah

ISTANBUL, Aug 11 (AFP) - Fresh sanctions slapped by the United States are meant to "expose and disrupt" links between Iran, Lebanon's armed Hezbollah movement and Syria, US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said Saturday.

She said the "number one goal" of Washington and Ankara was to hasten the end of Bashar alAssad's regime in Damascus and stop the bloodshed, while warning that Syria must not become a haven for Kurdish rebels battling Turkey.

"We are continuing to increase pressure from outside," Clinton told a joint press conference in Istanbul after meeting Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu and Syrian opposition activists.

"Yesterday in Washington we announced sanctions designed to expose and disrupt the links between Iran, Hezbollah and Syria that prolong the life of the Assad regime."Washington on Friday announced sanctions against Syrian state oil company Sytrol for trading with Iran, in a bid to starve both Tehran and Damascus of much-needed revenue.

The US Treasury also said it was adding the Lebanese Shiite militant group Hezbollah, which

The "number one goal" of Washington and Ankara was to hasten the end of Bashar al-Assad's regime in Damascus and stop the bloodshed...”

has close ties with Iran and Syria, to a blacklist of organisations targeted under Syria-related sanctions.

Washington already classes Hezbollah a "terrorist organisation" and it is under US sanctions, but Friday's move explicitly ties the group to the violence in Syria, where Assad is attempting to put down a 17-month revolt.

The sanctions are designed to increase pressure on Damascus as the conflict escalates sharply after the failure of former UNArab League envoy Kofi Annan's peace plan and his dramatic resignation.

World powers are expected to name veteran Algerian diplomat Lakhdar Brahimi as their new envoy for Syria early next week.

Clinton was also due to discuss with Turkey's leaders ways to effectively enforce sanctions against Syria and accelerate efforts for the fall of the Assad regime.

"Our goal number one is to hasten the end of the bloodshed and the Assad regime, that is our strategic goal," she said.