Updated 7.28pm - Sanctions were 'in the pipeline'
The United States today sanctioned 13 individuals and 12 entities under its Iran sanctions authority, days after the White House put Tehran "on notice" over a ballistic missile test and other activities.
In a statement on its website, the US Treasury listed the sanctioned individuals and entities, some of which are based in the United Arab Emirates, Lebanon and China.
The sanctions were "in the pipeline" before President Donald Trump took office, but were activated in light of recent events, White House press secretary Sean Spicer said.
"These kinds of sanctions don't happen quickly but I think the timing of them was clearly in reaction to what we've seen over the last couple days," Mr Spicer told reporters. "We knew we had these options available to us because they had been worked through the process ... They were in the pipeline."
The new designations stuck to areas that remain under sanctions even with the 2015 nuclear deal in place, such as the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) and Iran's ballistic missile program.
"Today's action is part of Treasury's ongoing efforts to counter Iranian malign activity abroad that is...
