WASHINGTON: The United States imposed sanctions on Wednesday on three key terrorist financiers, who allegedly raise funds for Al Qaeda affiliates in Syria and Iraq.

Two of them, Shafi Sultan Mohammed al-Ajmi and Hajjaj Fahd Hajjaj Muhammad Sahib al-’Ajmi, are Kuwait-based and support the Syria-based, Al Qaeda-linked terrorist organisation Al Nusrah Front (ANF).

One individual, ‘Abd al-Rahman Khalaf ‘Ubayd Juday’ al-’Anizi, is a financier and facilitator of the Islamic State of Iraq and al Sham (ISIS), previously known as Al Qaeda in Iraq (AQI).

Each has been designated as a Specially Designated Global Terrorist. ANF and ISIS continue to receive donations from private citizens located predominantly in the Arabian Peninsula to fund their operations.

Wednesday’s actions target individuals who play key roles in the external financing and facilitation of terrorists in Syria and Iraq, including particularly dangerous foreign fighters.

Published in Dawn, August 7th, 2014