Secretary Clinton announced yesterday that for the first time ever, the United States is imposing sanctions against Iran based on human rights abuses. She said that President Obama signed an executive order on Sept. 28 that sanctions eight Iranian officials who have been involved in "serious and sustained" human rights violations since June 2009's disputed presidential election. Under these officials' watch, Iranians have been "arbitrarily arrested, beaten, tortured, raped, blackmailed, and killed," Clinton said.

These sanctioned officials include Mohammad Ali Jafari, commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, and Sadeq Mahsouli, who was responsible for forces that attacked students at Tehran University dormitories on June 15, 2009. Also among the eight are officials with responsibility over the infamous Evin Prison and Kahrizak Detention Center. Ray Takeyh of the Council on Foreign Relations told the New York Times that these officials are "first-class thugs."

The sanctions were imposed under the Comprehensive Iran Sanctions, Accountability, and Divestment Act of 2010, which allows the U.S. government to target individual Iranians and make them subject to financial sanctions and U.S. visa denials. Alluding to criticisms that broad-based sanctions can hurt everyday people, Clinton mentioned that those against the eight officials will not adversely affect ordinary Iranian citizens:

We now have at our disposal a new tool that allows us to designate individual Iranians, officials responsible for or complicit in serious human rights violations, and do so in a way that does not in any way impact on the well-being of the Iranian people themselves.

She also said that with these sanctions, the United States is acting as a voice for the voiceless in Iran:

In [announcing sanctions] today, we declare our solidarity with [the] victims and with all Iranians who wish for a government that respects their human rights and their dignity and their freedom. By doing so, we convey our strong support for the rule of law, and we speak out for those unable to speak for themselves because they are jailed or frightened or fear retribution against themselves or their families.

Of course, how much impact will sanctions against eight people have on the Iranian government's behavior? Clinton said the sanctions are both practical and symbolic: The sanctions announcement "is a both a practical announcement in that there are financial and travel restrictions that will be imposed, but it is a statement of our values." She also said in her briefing, "We're not naive. We know that thus far, this government has been impervious to our pleas and the pleas of many others. But we think it's essential that we continue to make the case, and today we are adding in very specific terms with specific names to that case."

Also at the briefing was Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner (seen in the photo above), who explained that the logic of targeting Iranian individuals involves turning them into international pariahs:

We have found that when we single out individuals and expose their conduct, banks, businesses, and governments around the world respond by cutting off their economic and financial dealings with these individuals, these institutions, these businesses.

And this strategy can be very effective. We've seen a growing number of companies and financial institutions in countries around the world cut or substantially curtail their financial ties with Iran. They … have assessed the risks of continuing to do business with these entities, and they have decided that those risks are too great. And we already have indications that Iran's leadership is concerned about the implications, about the impact of this trend. 

Clinton, Geithner, and Obama are turning up the heat!

Video of the briefing:

Secretary Clinton welcomes the news that Iran has released Sarah Shourd -- one of the three detained American hikers -- but she also urges the country to "extend the same consideration to [other detained U.S. citizens] by resolving their cases without delay and allowing them to immediately return to their families."

Below is Clinton's complete statement:

I welcome Sarah Shourd's release from detention in Iran, and am pleased that she will soon be reunited with her family. I appreciate the efforts of all those who have worked for her release, in particular the Swiss Protecting Power in Tehran, the Omani Government, and the many other world leaders who have raised this case and the cases of other detained or missing American citizens. Sarah's fiancé Shane Bauer, Joshua Fattal, and other U.S. citizens remain detained or missing in Iran. We urge Iranian authorities to extend the same consideration to them by resolving their cases without delay and allowing them to immediately return to their families.

(In the photo above, Sarah Shourd gets a visit from her mother, Nora Shourd, in Tehran on May 20.)

An Iranian woman who received a stoning sentence could be executed -- possibly in a week's time after Ramadan ends -- but will Secretary Clinton do anything to save her?

France's foreign minister, Bernard Kouchner, said Sept. 6 that the case of Sakineh Mohammadi Ashtiani has become his "personal cause" and declared, "I'm ready to do anything to save her. If I must go to Tehran to save her, I'll go to Tehran."

Today, European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso called the stoning sentence "barbaric beyond words." In late July, Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva offered Ashtiani asylum, though he was rebuffed by Iran. The Vatican is considering using behind-the-scenes diplomacy to save the woman's life. People worldwide have held demonstrations, such as the Aug. 5 one in Berlin, as seen above.

Clinton's only public effort on Ashtiani's behalf has basically amounted to an Aug. 10 statement in which she said, "We remain troubled by the case of Sakineh Mohammadi Ashtiani" "Troubled" is putting it mildly; horrified is more like it.

Of course, the United States does not have official relations with Iran, and Clinton must consider how anything she does on Ashtiani's behalf would affect other Iran-related issues, such as the country's nuclear program and support for Hezbollah.

Still, being a defender of persecuted women is right up Clinton's alley; it's something she's deeply passionate about. So, it's disheartening that one of the world's most powerful women isn't doing or can't do more.

Ashtiani's stoning sentence for adultery was stayed in July after international outcry, and Iran has said she could be hanged instead. Her fate is unclear. Her son told a Paris news conference by phone on Sept. 6 that he fears his mother could be executed after Ramadan ends late this week.

(If you wish to send a message to Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei about this case, you can do so through Amnesty International's website by clicking here.)

Secretary Clinton on Friday, June 25, welcomed passage of the Comprehensive Iran Sanctions, Accountability, and Divestment Act of 2010, whose aims include "constraining Iran's nuclear program, changing the calculus of Iran's leaders, and demonstrating that Iran's policies decrease its standing, and further isolate it in the international community."

Clinton -- whom Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad in May called an "enemy of Iran" -- stated that in addition to addressing Iran's nuclear activities, the legislation addresses Iran's human rights violations against its own citizens. She said, "We support the Congress' efforts to call attention to these violations, and the United States will continue to hold Iran accountable for its obligations to respect the rights of its own people.?"

(In the photo above, an Iranian woman wrapped in a Palestinian flag cuts up a portrait of Secretary Clinton during an anti-Israel protest in Tehran on May 31, the day of the Israeli raid on a Gaza-bound ship.)

Secretary Clinton says yesterday's U.N. Security Council resolution sends an "unambiguous signal" to Iran that it will be held responsible for actions it takes to develop nuclear weapons.

In a statement issued yesterday about the resolution, which places even more sanctions on Iran, Clinton said:

I commend the United Nations Security Council for its adoption today of UN Security Council Resolution 1929, aimed at addressing the international community's concerns regarding Iran's nuclear program.…

This resolution sends an unambiguous signal to Iran that the international community holds it accountable for its actions. The measures in this resolution go well beyond the pre-existing sanctions on Iran. That said, we have worked hard to minimize their impact on the Iranian people. They target instead elements within the Iranian government, with the aim of changing the leadership's calculations.…

The United States is committed to a diplomatic solution to the challenge posed by Iran's nuclear program and we hope the Council's adoption of this resolution will make clear to Iran's leaders the choice that is before them: how much they have to gain from real engagement with the international community, and how much more they stand to lose from continuing down their current path.

The big question, though, is: Will the sanctions work? The recent FP piece, "Weak Tea," argues that this latest round of sanctions has been watered down to the point that they will be "ineffective."

Update: Clinton's impromptu remarks about the resolution, including her reaction to Brazil's and Turkey's no votes, are here.

(In the photo above, Clinton leads a U.N. Security Council session on Sept. 30, 2009.)

With a possible U.N. Security Council vote on a sanctions resolution against Iran this week, Secretary Clinton declared yesterday:

"I fully expect Iran to pull some stunt in the next couple of days because they know that sanctions are on the way."

According to the Associated Press, her tough words also included:

"I think we will see something coming up in the next 24 to 48 hours where Iran says, 'Wait a minute, wait a minute, look at what we're going to do now.'"

Clinton made the remarks as she departed on trip to Latin America, where she is expected to urge Brazil, an elected Security Council member that doesn't support U.N. sanctions against Iran, to come over to the U.S. side on the issue. As explained in the recent FP piece, "Ahmadinejad's Sugar Daddy," Brazilian ethanol could help Iran outwit the United States on sanctions.

Just a couple of weeks ago at the Brookings Institution, as seen above, Clinton said, "We think buying time for Iran, enabling Iran to avoid international unity with respect to their nuclear program, makes the world more dangerous not less."

Referring to efforts by Brazil and Turkey to make a deal with Iran on containing its nuclear program, Secretary Clinton said, as reported by Reuters:

We think buying time for Iran, enabling Iran to avoid international unity with respect to their nuclear program, makes the world more dangerous not less.

Clinton made the comment during a speech today that unveiled the Obama administration's new National Security Strategy. In responding to a question asked after the speech, Clinton said U.S. debt and government deficits weaken the United States, as reported by Reuters:

We cannot sustain this level of deficit financing and debt without losing our influence, without being constrained about the tough decisions we have to make."

Hopefully when the full transcript is up, I'll have more excerpts to post.

Oh, boy. We knew it was coming. After Secretary Clinton warned on Feb. 15 that Iran was becoming a "military dictatorship," the Islamic Republic's leaders have hit back. Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said on Iranian state TV yesterday, "Now, the Americans, once again, have dispatched their agent as a saleswoman to the Persian Gulf to spread lies."

On Feb. 16, President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad told a televised news conference, "We don't take her comments seriously" and said that the United States' military budget is 80 times that of Iran. He also said, "These comments she is making are not wise."

None of these criticisms will phase Clinton (seen above on Feb. 14 in Doha, Qatar). She just calls it as she sees it.

Secretary Clinton is meeting today with President Obama in the White House's Situation Room to discuss the security weaknesses that led to the near bombing of the U.S.-bound plane from Amsterdam on Christmas Day. Other high-level administration officials in attendance will be: Defense Secretary Robert Gates, Secretary of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano, Attorney General Eric Holder, FBI Director Robert Muller, and CIA Director Leon Panetta. The would-be bomber's father had reported him to the U.S. Embassy in Abuja, Nigeria, but that wasn't enough to prevent the son from boarding a U.S.-bound plane. As head of the State Department, Clinton will most certainly want to ensure that information given to embassies is promptly and effectively acted upon.

Other Clinton news:

•Clinton said, "The instability in Yemen is a threat to regional stability and even global stability," after meeting with Qatar's prime minister yesterday.

•Clinton said yesterday that Iran is showing "mounting signs of ruthless repression." She also said there's no strict deadline for U.S.-Iran nuclear negotiations. Iran liked those remarks.

•Clinton barely edged out Sarah Palin (16 percent versus 15 percent) as most-admired woman in a USA Today/Gallup poll.

•A new book has Clinton's name in the subtitle: Notes from the Cracked Ceiling: Hillary Clinton, Sarah Palin, and What It Will Take for a Woman to Win.

•A list of contributors to the William J. Clinton Foundation has been released as part of an ethics promise by Secretary Clinton. The diverse group of donors includes Norway, Oman, the PGA Tour Inc., Donald Trump, and Bug Works Pest Control Co.

Secretary Clinton discussed Iran with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov in Moscow today. As one senior U.S. official put it, Clinton wanted to know "what specific forms of pressure Russia would be prepared" to join the United States in if Iran didn't keep its promises about not developing nuclear weapons.

Lavrov proved tough, though, and didn't pledge tougher sanctions against Iran, stating at a news conference afterward that sanctions would be counterproductive at this point. "All forces should be aimed at supporting talks," he said.

Clinton doesn't support tougher sanctions at this time either, saying at the news conference, "But we are not at that point yet. That is not a conclusion we have reached. And we want to be very clear that it is our preference that Iran works with the international community … to fulfill its obligation on inspections."

Clinton said that overall her discussion with Lavrov was "very comprehensive and productive." "I feel very good about the so-called reset," she said.

Clinton met later with human rights activists and opposition journalists and concluded her day by attending the opera The Love for Three Oranges at the Bolshoi Theatre.

Photo: ALEXANDER NEMENOV/AFP/Getty Images

Secretary Clinton was on TV yesterday! In a Face the Nation interview that was pre-taped Friday, Clinton talked about the recent news of Iran's secret nuclear facility and the upcoming Oct. 1 meeting between representatives of Iran and the P5+1 countries -- Britain, China, France, Germany, Russia, and the United States.

Clinton said of Iran, its nuclear facility, and the Oct. 1 meeting:

We don't believe that they can present convincing evidence that it's only for peaceful purposes, but we are going to put them to the test on October 1st."

When asked, "What can Iran say in this meeting to say we're really -- all all we're trying to do is make electricity?", Clinton bluntly replied:

Well, they can't say anything because they've said that for years, but they can open up their entire system to the kind of extensive investigation that the facts call for."

When interviewer Harry Smith asked Clinton about the "crippling sanctions" that Clinton said should be put in place if diplomacy with Iran fails, she replied:

Well, Harry, we're exploring how you broaden and deepen sanctions. Now sanctions are already in place as you know, but like many sanction regimes they're leaky. But in the last eight months since we've been dealing with North Korea on a similar set of issues we have forged an international consensus around very tough sanctions. And that's given us some additional information about how to proceed on the Iranian front."

When the interview switched to Pakistan, Clinton had complimentary words:

HARRY SMITH: Is Pakistan doing enough to clean up its own house?

HILLARY CLINTON: Well, look at, again, what has happened in the last nine months. Pakistan has increased its commitment in the fight against the Taliban and al Qaeda.

HARRY SMITH (overlapping): They were successful in Swat valley.

HILLARY CLINTON: Absolutely successful.

Clinton did add, though, that the United States is working for even more action from Pakistan.

Meanwhile, husband Bill was on Meet the Press. When asked about the presence of Hillary's famously worded "vast right-wing conspiracy," Bill said:

It's not as strong as it was, because America's changed demographically, but it's as virulent as it was."

And when asked whether Hillary will ever run for president again, Bill replied:

That's up to her. I don't -- you know, we're not getting any younger. But I'm proud of what she's doing now. I think she's doing a good job and I'm honored that -- I think it's pretty thrilling that she and the president have established the relationship they have. And it's a good argument for reconciliation and remembering the big things for all the rest of us."

As you might have noticed today, one of the four square thumbnail photos on the FP home page has a photo of Secretary Clinton and the words: "Did Clinton Make a Gaffe Nobody Noticed?"

The words link to a post on The Cable about something Clinton said on Sunday's Meet the Press. Addressing Iran, she said:

You have a right to pursue the peaceful use of civil nuclear power. You do not have a right to obtain a nuclear weapon. You do not have the right to have the full enrichment and reprocessing cycle under your control."

Apparently, whether Iran has the right to enrich is up for debate. According to Rozen's piece, many nonproliferation experts think Iran does have the right. Others, however, say Iran has lost that right because it violated conditions of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), namely by hiding many of its nuclear activities for 18 years.

Did Clinton misspeak and thereby make a gaffe? Absolutely not. She was simply stating the United States' position -- held under both the Obama and George W. Bush administrations -- that Iran has forfeited its right to enrich because it didn't meet the terms of the NPT. An administration official told The Cable via e-mail: "She stated existing USG [U.S. government] policy, verbatim. So your folks are just plain wrong."

Photo: Thumbnail photo from Meet the Press

In an interview with private TV network Globovision that was broadcast Tuesday in Venezuela, Secretary Clinton got tough on Iran, calling for "even stricter" sanctions and saying its "pursuit of nuclear weapons" would "be very destabilizing in the Middle East and beyond."

Some sound bites:

We would ask the world to join us in imposing even stricter sanctions on Iran to try to change the behavior of the regime.

We have seen in the last weeks that Iran has not respected its own democracy.

It has taken actions against his own citizens for peacefully protesting. ["His" referring to President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.]

I think it is not a very smart position to ally with a regime that is being rejected by so many of their own people.

Last month, most of you voted that Clinton should be speaking out more about the Iranian election and its aftermath. It looks like Clinton is doing just that.

As for why Clinton did an interview with a Venezuelan TV network? She's trying to ease the tense relationship between the United States and Venezuela. She reached out (literally) to President Hugo Chávez in April, and the United States recently returned its ambassador to Venezuela. Clinton told Globovision, "We are trying to lower the temperature. … We want to make it clear that there are ways for us to have a conversation with people we don't agree with on many issues."

Photo: ARASH KHAMOOSHI/AFP/Getty Images

Thanks to all of you who voted about whether Secretary Clinton should be speaking out more about the Iranian election and its aftermath. To date, 54 percent of you said Clinton should be speaking out more, 35 percent said she shouldn't, and 10 percent were undecided. (Rounding makes the percentages not sum to 100, and no, this poll wasn't scientific.)

Well, it turns out that Clinton did "speak out" in a unique way on Wednesday when she ordered all U.S. embassies and consular missions to rescind July 4 Independence Day party invitations sent to Iranian diplomats. When it comes to Iran, Clinton is canceling the "hot dog" diplomacy. In a cable sent to U.S. diplomatic posts worldwide, Clinton said:

Unfortunately, circumstances have changed, and participation by Iranian diplomats would not be appropriate in light of the unjust actions that the President and I have condemned.  For invitations which have been extended, posts should make clear that Iranian participation is no longer appropriate in the current circumstances.

No Iranian diplomats will be crying about having their hot dogs snatched away from them, though; none had RSVPed that they were coming. 

By the way, I hope that none of those hot dogs that embassies planned to offer contained pork.

Photo: iStockphoto