U.S. Blacklists Dozens Linked to Islamic State

U.S. officials on Tuesday levied asset freezes and travel bans against 30 individuals and entities for joining the Islamic State or otherwise aiding the group’s military operations and territorial expansion.

In a statement, the U.S. Treasury Department accused 15 individuals of either helping jihadists travel from their home countries to join the Islamic State in Syria and Iraq, or raising and transferring funds for the organization.

The U.S. State Department separately blacklisted 10 individuals under the same executive order, as well as Islamic State-affiliated groups in Algeria, Indonesia, Afghanistan, Pakistan and the Caucasus.

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Both sets of designations underscore the Islamic State’s success at establishing footholds in regions far removed from its primary base of operations, according to Jonathan Schanzer, a former terrorist finance analyst with the Treasury Department.

The list of designees also includes individuals and groups from the United Kingdom, Bosnia, France, and Russia, in addition to entities from Yemen, Saudi Arabia, and other historical recruiting centers in the Middle East and North Africa.

The designations also suggest at least some level of cooperation between the group and its adversary, Jabhat al-Nusra (JAN), al-Qa’ida’s affiliate in Syria. JAN and al-Qa’ida affiliates in North Africa and Yemen helped Islamic State members travel to Syria as recently as December 2013, U.S. officials said.

“The effect of these new designations likely indicates improved U.S. ability to collect intelligence on the group’s activities, but their practical effect will probably be limited,” said Schanzer, now a vice president with the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, a Washington, D.C.-based policy center. 

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