WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The White House on Wednesday issued an order expanding sanctions against Syria, saying the nation's leaders have engaged in a pattern of violating human rights in their own country and harmed the peace and stability of other nations in the region, including Iraq.
A view of the Syrian capital Damascus.
In the executive order, President Bush accuses Syria of actions "including, but not limited to, undermining efforts with respect to the stabilization of Iraq."
The order expands similar sanctions imposed in 2004.
It blocks senior Syrian officials who have benefited from "public corruption" from having access to property the United States owns in Syria.
No officials are named in the order.
"The United States will continue to stand with the people of Syria and the region as they seek to exercise their rights peacefully and to build a brighter future," said a statement released by the White House.
The 2004 ordered banned U.S. exports to Syria, except for food and medicine, allowed the U.S. Treasury Department to seize the property of Syrians involved in terrorism and banned flights between the United States and Syria.
The White House statement also says Syria "continues to undermine Lebanon's sovereignty and democracy, imprison democracy activists, curtail human rights, and sponsor and harbor terrorists." E-mail to a friend 
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