EU imposes sanctions on top Syrian military intelligence official

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - The European Union imposed sanctions on a senior Syrian military intelligence official on Friday, adding him to a list of more than 200 Syrians subject to an EU asset freeze. General Muhammad al-Mahalla has been head of the internal affairs branch of Syrian Military Intelligence since April, the EU's Official Journal said. The EU accused him of being "responsible for repression and violence against the civilian population in Damascus/Damascus countryside." Syria is in the fifth year of a civil war that has killed more than 220,000 people, according to the United Nations. The EU said on Thursday that its member governments had decided to add a high-ranking Syrian military official to its sanctions list, but his name was kept secret until the sanctions took effect on Friday. The EU also extended sanctions on more than 200 Assad supporters and 70 organizations for another year. EU began imposing asset freezes and travel bans on Assad and his supporters in 2011 to protest a government crackdown on Assad's opponents. Other EU sanctions on Syria include restrictions on exporting equipment that might be used for internal repression and a ban on importing oil from Syria. (Reporting by Adrian Croft and Sylvia Westall; Editing by Larry King)