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Iran Jailed Me for My Last Op-Ed
(Wall Street Journal) Hossein Ronaghi - On Feb. 23, plainclothes agents of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps imprisoned me for more than a week. This is the group that many in the U.S. argue should be removed from the American terrorist sanctions list. They claim that sanctions on the IRGC are merely symbolic and do little to hold it accountable. As someone who was recently in its prisons, I can assure you that the designation of these criminals as terrorists not only limits their access to resources but sends a message that the world is watching, raising the stakes of the regime's crimes. As the American president considers removing my captors and the murderers of peaceful protesters from the U.S. sanctions list, let me say clearly: This is not what Iranians want. Sending our dictator and his regime billions of dollars is not in our best interest. We are willing to live under the economic pressure of sanctions if it weakens the regime holding us hostage and cuts off some of the resources used to jail us, torture us and shoot us in the streets.