New Syrian ministers added to EU blacklist

Syrian ministers and the governor of the central bank governor have been placed on an EU sanctions blacklist, meaning they will face travel bans and asset freezes.

The officials were added to the list following the brutal assault on Syrian towns and cities opposed to the regime, which has left thousands dead in recent months.

Most of the ministers were appointed to their positions in July when a new cabinet was formed by then Electricity Minister Emad Khamis who was made prime minister.

The officials are "responsible for the violent repression against the civilian population in Syria, benefiting from or supporting the regime, and/or being associated with such persons", an EU statement said.

EU leaders agreed last month to add more sanctions on Assad regime officials citing devastating attacks on Syria's second city of Aleppo.

They also added ten top military and  government officials to the list.

Members of the Syrian opposition were left disapointed that Russian officials backing Syria's Bashar al-Assad's were not included on the backlist.

More than 230 Syrians have been hit with travel bans or asset freezes, the EU said.

Another 69 entities are affected by asset freezes while the EU also has in place other sanctions against Syria as a whole, including arms and oil embargoes plus investment restrictions.

Agencies contributed to this story.