December 5, 2021

UN, UK and Switzerland sanction ISIL supporter

The United Nations Security Council recently added Emraan Ali, a national of Trinidad and Tobago and naturalized US citizen, to its ISIL (Da’esh) and Al-Qaida sanctions list because of his participation in the planning or financing of activities associated with ISIL, listed as Al-Qaida in Iraq, and supporting the commission of terrorist acts by providing expertise to a terrorist organization.  Sanctions were announced by the UN on November 23, 2021 and issued pursuant to resolution 2368 (2017) imposing restrictions that include asset freezes, travel bans and an arms embargo.  

On November 25, 2021, in response to the sanctions imposed by the UN, the UK Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation imposed restrictive measures, including asset freezes, against Ali in accordance with the ISIL (Da’esh) and Al-Qaida (United Nations Sanctions) (EU Exit) Regulations 2019 (SI 2019/466).  On the same day, Switzerland’s State Secretariat for Economic Affairs also sanctioned Ali pursuant to its ordinance on measures against persons and organizations with ties to Usama bin Laden, the Al-Qaida, group or the Taliban (SR 946.231), which also imposes asset freezes, travel bans and a ban on armament supplies.

UN Press Release | UN Security Council Press Release | OFSI Sanctions Notice | SECO Sanctions Notice