On January 16, 2025, the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control sanctioned the leader of the Sudanese Armed Forces (“SAF”), one of two warring factions responsible for the ongoing fighting in Sudan. Specifically, OFAC designated Abdel Fattah Al-Burhan, the commander of the SAF, who has refused to participate in international peace talk to end the fighting in Sudan, according of OFAC. Burhan’s war tactics are also allegedly responsible for the indiscriminate bombing of civilian infrastructure, extrajudicial executions, and attacks on schools and hospitals in Sudan. OFAC also designated Ahmad Abdalla, an official involved in the procurement of weapons for the SAF, and Portex Trade Limited, a company that Abdalla controls.
OFAC imposed these designations pursuant to Executive Order 14098, which authorizes sanctions against individuals and entities that engage in actions or policies that threaten the peace, security and stability of Sudan. As a result, all property and interests in property of the designees within the United States or within the possession or control of a U.S. person are blocked, and U.S. persons are generally prohibited from engaging in transactions involving designated persons. Entities owned 50 percent or more by one or more blocked persons are also blocked.