Al Nusra Front Leaders Sanctioned

 

From time to time, the United States identifies certain individuals as crucial to the operation of terrorist organizations. These include persons who have committed, or are deemed to pose a significant risk of committing acts of terrorism.

When such an individual is identified, the U.S. government places that person's name on the List of Specially¹ Designated Nationals and Blocked Persons. Their assets within U.S. reach are immediately frozen and the designated person is locked out of the U.S. financial network. Additionally, U.S. persons are not allowed to conduct business with a designated person. In this way, the United States works to disrupt financial support networks for terrorists and terrorist organizations.

In a push to disrupt the operations of the terrorist group al-Nusra Front, the U.S. Department of the Treasury² designated Iyad Nazmi Salih Khalil and Bassam Ahmad al-Hasri under Executive Order 13224. This action took place the day after the United Nations added these individuals to the UN Security Council ISIL (Da'esh) and al-Qa'ida Sanctions List, obligating its member states to freeze their assets, including locking these individuals out of the international financial system, prohibit their travel, and prevent them from acquiring weapons.

The al-Nusra Front, formed five years ago as a subsidiary of al-Qa'ida, is a jihadist group fighting in Syria, with the goal of setting up an Islamist regime in that country.

Since 2016, Iyad Nazmi Salih Khalil has been the al-Nusra Front's third highest officer. As such, he has participated in senior leadership discussions regarding the al Nusra Front's overall strategy. In his prior position as emir of Dar'aa, Syria, Khalil presided over the group's security and intelligence operatives.

Bassam Ahmad al-Hasri has long-standing ties with al-Qa'ida. In the past, he has served as a religious adviser³ of the al-Nusra Front, and since June 2016, has been the group's emir of Dar'aa.

“From overseeing militant⁴ operations to developing al-Nusrah Front's strategy, these senior Al-Nusrah Front leaders and al-Qa'ida terrorists are responsible for providing key support to the violent terrorist group,” said John E. Smith, Acting⁵ OFAC Director. “The Treasury Department, in line with actions just taken by the United Nations, is cutting off their access to the international financial system to further disrupt al-Nusra Front's ability to plan and execute terrorist attacks.”

1 specially   

adv.特定地；特殊地；明确地

参考例句：

• They are specially packaged so that they stack easily.它们经过特别包装以便于堆放。
• The machine was designed specially for demolishing old buildings.这种机器是专为拆毁旧楼房而设计的。

2 treasury   

n.宝库；国库，金库；文库

参考例句：

• The Treasury was opposed in principle to the proposals.财政部原则上反对这些提案。
• This book is a treasury of useful information.这本书是有价值的信息宝库。

3 adviser   

n.劝告者，顾问

参考例句：

• They employed me as an adviser.他们聘请我当顾问。
• Our department has engaged a foreign teacher as phonetic adviser.我们系已经聘请了一位外籍老师作为语音顾问。

4 militant   

adj.激进的，好斗的；n.激进分子，斗士

参考例句：

• Some militant leaders want to merge with white radicals.一些好斗的领导人要和白人中的激进派联合。
• He is a militant in the movement.他在那次运动中是个激进人物。

5 acting   

n.演戏，行为，假装；adj.代理的，临时的，演出用的

参考例句：

• Ignore her,she's just acting.别理她，她只是假装的。
• During the seventies,her acting career was in eclipse.在七十年代，她的表演生涯黯然失色。