Curbs tightened on Taliban, Al Qaeda: UNSC’s resolution
By Masood Haider
UNITED NATIONS, July 30: The UN Security Council on Friday through a resolution adopted unanimously expanded the UN sanctions against Al Qaeda and the Taliban to their affiliates and splinter groups and clamping down on terrorist financing. The UN sanctions currently require all 191 UN member states to impose a travel ban and arms embargo against Afghanistan’s former Taliban leaders, Osama bin Laden and his Al Qaeda network and those ”associated” with them and to freeze their financial assets.
The new resolution spells out for the first time who is included among Al Qaeda and the Taliban’s associates. The resolution sets up a monitoring team to assess efforts by the 191 UN member states to implement sanctions against Al Qaeda and the Taliban and to come up with ways to punish countries that willingly ignore the sanctions. It also asks that the list of those under sanctions be included in an Interpol database.
The list currently includes 143 people and one entity associated with the Taliban and 182 people and 117 entities associated with Al Qaeda. European Union countries have been critical of the sanctions regime for ensuring that the right people were on the list and were given due process.
The resolution now requires countries to provide the Security Council with the reasons behind the listing of a person or entity. It also asks governments to inform those on the list in writing, if possible, of the sanctions committee’s guidelines for being listed and de-listed.
Among other things, it states that people who finance or plan acts to support the outlawed groups and who recruit or provide weapons for Osama, Al Qaeda, the Taliban “or any cell, affiliate, splinter group or derivative Thereof’’ will face sanctions.
For the first time, the resolution also urges nations to enact recommendations set out by the Financial Action Task Force, a group of more than 50 nations seeking to tighten controls on underground money transfers used to bankroll the Sept 11, 2001, attacks on America and other terrorist activities.
“We have increased the pressure on Al Qaeda, the Taliban and their associates,’’ acting US ambassador Anne Patterson said in a statement. It also noted that no member state reported a violation of the travel ban — but it was “difficult to believe’’ no Al Qaeda or Taliban member had crossed a national border.
