The United States (US) on Tuesday imposed sanctions targeting the Al Qaeda-linked group, ISIS, in Somalia, designating members of the group and others it accused of being involved in a terrorist weapons trafficking network in Eastern Africa, reported The TRT World.
In a statement, the US Treasury Department said several of the people who were targeted with sanctions on Tuesday have sold weapons to or were active Al Shabab members. The sanctions have been announced against eight individuals and one company all involved in the smuggling of millions of dollars of weapons between Yemen and Somalia.
Among those targeted are Abdirahman Fahiye, who is believed to lead IS-Somalia’s day-to-day operations, Mohamed Ahmed Qahiye, who leads IS-Somalia’s intelligence group, and Isse Mohamoud Yusuf, who run weapons on behalf of IS.
Brian Nelson, the US undersecretary for terrorism and financial intelligence, said in a statement that the sanctions take direct aim at the networks funding and supplying both ISIS-Somalia and al-Shabab.
“The involvement of those designated [Tuesday] in other criminal activity, including piracy and illegal fishing, demonstrates the extent of ISIS-Somalia’s integration with illicit networks and other terrorist organizations operating in the region,” Nelson added.
The US Treasury Department also sanctioned an ISIS supporter in Brazil, who serve as a liaison for the militant group.
The sanctions announced on Tuesday come just a few days after a deadly attack in the Somali capital of Mogadishu, where twin car bombs killed more than 100 people and injured more than 300. Al-Shabaab has claimed responsibility for the attack.
While the move is the first from the US targeting Daesh in Somalia, some additional action is expected in the coming weeks and months as Washington seeks to expose and disrupt terrorist financing in Africa. The US State Department had designated ISIS in Somalia as a Specially Designated Global Terrorist in 2018.
