BRUSSELS — The European Parliament has barred Iranian diplomats from entering its premises amid the ongoing crackdown on protesters by Tehran, President Roberta Metsola said on Monday.

The ban is in place in Brussels, Strasbourg, Luxembourg and all of Parliament’s liaison offices in European cities, according to a Parliament official.

Metsola has clashed in recent weeks with the Iranian embassy in Brussels over her staunch support for the protesters. Iran’s mission to the EU accused her of “disgusting hypocrisy” in a social media post last week.

In a new social media post on Monday, Metsola said the Parliament “will not aid in legitimizing this regime that has sustained itself through torture, repression and murder.”

“I have taken the decision to ban all diplomats, staff of diplomatic missions, government officials, and representatives of the Islamic Republic of Iran from entering any premises of the European Parliament,” Metsola wrote in an email to all members and staff on Monday.

In the meantime, the European Union is prepared to push for fresh sanctions on Iran.

Earlier on Monday, a European Commission spokesperson confirmed that Brussels was working on “new, more severe” sanctions against the Iranian regime using a “dedicated legal framework” to target individuals and entities accused of “serious human rights violations and abuses”.

“This is a decision for member states to take unanimously,” the Commission spokesperson said.

The EU's statements and latest discussions come as Iran’s death toll continues to rise following demonstrations that erupted on 28 December over the collapse of the Iranian rial.

According to a report by the US-based Human Rights Activists News Agency, more than 10,600 people have been detained and more than 600 killed during two weeks of escalating protests. — Agencies