WASHINGTON, Nov 9: The US State Department has added nine groups suspected of terrorist links to a visa blacklist which will keep their members or affiliates out of the country, sources reported.

With these additions the total number of ‘extremist oraganizations’ rises to 45 groups, which includes businesses groups too. They have been put on US Terrorist Exclusion List, the department said in a statement issued on Friday.

The new entities are: The Al Taqwa Trade, Property and Industry Company, Bank Al Taqwa, Nada Management Organization, Youssef M. Nada and Company Gesellschaft MBH, Ummah Tameer E-Nau (UTN), the Loyalist Volunteer Force (LVF), the Ulster Defence Association, the Afghan Support Committee and the Revival of Islamic Heritage Society.

Foreign Terrorist Organizations are foreign organizations that are designated by the Secretary of State in accordance with the Immigration and Nationality Act.

The FTO designations expire automatically after two years, but the Secretary of State may redesignate an organization for additional two-year period upon a finding that the statutory criteria continue to be met.

Al Qaeda has been on this list since the 1998 bombing of the US embassies in East Africa.

Pakistani groups Jaish-i-Mohammed, Harkat-ul-Mujahideen and Lashkar-i Taiba were added to the list after the Sept 11 attacks in the United States.