US designates Cabo Delgado islamists as “terrorists” – AIM report

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US designates Cabo Delgado islamists as “terrorists” – AIM report

7:28 CAT | 12 Mar 2021

IDPs from Cabo Delgado. [File photo: Lusa]

The United States government has formally designated the jihadist groups operating in Mozambique and in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) as “terrorist organisations”.

A Wednesday note issued by the US State Department declared that it has designated “the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria – Democratic Republic of the Congo (ISIS-DRC) and the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria – Mozambique (ISIS-Mozambique) as Foreign Terrorist Organizations under section 219 of the Immigration and Nationality Act”.

The State Department also designated two men it has identified as leaders of the jihadist groups, Seka Musa Baluku (DRC) and Abu Yasir Hassan (Mozambique), as “Specially Designated Global Terrorists” SDGTs.

The practical result of these designations, says the State Department note, is that “all property and interests in property of those designated that are subject to U.S. jurisdiction are blocked, and U.S. persons are generally prohibited from engaging in any transactions with them”.

Furthermore, any financial institutions that knowingly conduct or facilitate any significant transaction on behalf of these groups or individuals could be subject to U.S. sanctions. It is also now a crime “to knowingly provide material support or resources to ISIS-DRC or ISIS-Mozambique, or to attempt or conspire to do so”.

Giving a brief history of the terrorist organisations, the State Department said “the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) announced the launch of the Islamic State Central Africa Province (ISCAP) in April 2019 to promote the presence of ISIS associated elements within Central, East, and Southern Africa. Although ISIS-associated media portray ISCAP as a unified structure, ISIS-DRC and ISIS-Mozambique are distinct groups with distinct origins”.

The Mozambican group is also known as Ansar al-Sunna. In the northern province of Cabo Delgado, where it has terrorised several districts, it is also known as “al-Shabaab”, although it seems to have no connection with the Somali terrorist group of the same name. The State Department notes that the Mozambican group “reportedly pledged allegiance to ISIS as early as April 2018, and was acknowledged by ISIS-Core as an affiliate in August 2019. Since October 2017, ISIS-Mozambique, led by Abu Yasir Hassan, has killed more than 1,300 civilians”.

It is also held responsible for the mass displacement of as many as 670,000 people from their homes.

The designations, says the State Department release, “notify the U.S. public and the international community that these groups have committed or pose a significant risk of committing acts of terrorism, and they identify leaders of them”.

The purpose of such designations, it adds, is “to expose and isolate entities and individuals, and deny them access to the U.S. financial system. Moreover, designations can assist the law enforcement activities of U.S. agencies and other governments”.

Source: AIM