Drone (illustration)
Drone (illustration)iStock

The 27-member EU bloc has approved a fresh slate of sanctions against eight Iranian entities and individuals following the sale of advanced "kamikaze" suicide drones to Russia.

According to sources, the penalties will target Iranian drone manufacturer Shahed Aviation Industries, two senior military commanders, and Brig. Gen. Saeed Aghajani, an IRCG officer behind the Islamic Republic's drone program. The sanctions, including asset freezes and travel bans, went into effect Thursday.

“If Iran walks like a duck, talks like a duck and admits to supplying drones to the biggest duck in the world then I think we have enough evidence to say that Iran is a duck. Let’s sanction the duck out of them,” Lithuania’s Foreign Minister Gabrielius Landsbergis stated in an interview.

Ukraine has reported a series of deadly Russian attacks using Iranian-made Shahed-136 drones as the Russian offensive appears to be dead in its tracks and Ukrainian forces have rolled out a counteroffensive in the east of the country, taking back large swaths of territory occupied in previous months.

A Ukrainian spokesperson said on Wednesday that the country's defense forces had shot down more than 220 Iranian UAVs since September 13. For its part, Iran continues denying it has supplied drones to its Russian ally.