Individual and Targeted Sanctions
How asset freezes, travel bans, and Magnitsky-style sanctions target specific people rather than entire countries.
From Comprehensive to Targeted
In the 1990s, comprehensive sanctions against Iraq caused a humanitarian catastrophe -- hundreds of thousands of Iraqi civilians suffered while Saddam Hussein's regime remained intact. The experience prompted a fundamental rethinking. By the early 2000s, the international community had shifted toward 'smart' or 'targeted' sanctions designed to hit decision-makers directly while minimizing harm to ordinary citizens.
Targeted sanctions include asset freezes (blocking access to bank accounts and property in sanctioning jurisdictions), travel bans (preventing entry to sanctioning countries), and sectoral restrictions (blocking specific economic activities). The theory is that sanctioning the oligarchs, generals, and officials who sustain an abusive regime creates direct pressure on decision-makers rather than indirect pressure through population suffering.
