The Office of Foreign Assets Control sanctioned Ali Darassa, the leader of a militia group in the Central African Republic, for human rights violations, the agency said Dec. 17. Darassa is the leader of the Union for Peace in the Central African Republic, whose militants have killed and displaced thousands of people in the region since 2014, the agency said.
President Joe Biden extended a national emergency that authorizes certain sanctions against human rights abuses and corruption, the White House said Dec. 16. The “prevalence” of human rights violations and corruption continues to threaten U.S. security, the White House said. The emergency was extended for one year beyond Dec. 20.
The Biden administration plans to place eight additional Chinese companies on its investment blacklist on Dec. 16, including DJI, the world’s largest drone maker, the Financial Times reported this week. The Treasury Department will add the companies to its Chinese military-industrial complex companies list for their alleged ties to surveillance efforts and human rights abuses of Muslim minorities in China’s Xinjiang region, the report said.
The G-7 countries, along with the European Union, said Russia will see “massive consequences and severe cost in response” if it pursues further military actions in Ukraine, in a statement Dec. 13. While the countries didn’t specifically mention sanctions, Josep Borrell, the EU’s foreign policy chief, said he is working with the U.S. and the U.K. on potentially imposing a new set of designations. “We are studying together with the U.S. and the U.K. what [sanctions] could be, when and how, in a coordinated manner,” Borrell told reporters Dec. 13, according to Reuters. The G-7 countries called on Russia to “de-escalate, pursue diplomatic channels, and abide by its international commitments on transparency of military activities” or risk countermeasures. “We will intensify our cooperation on our common and comprehensive response,” the countries said.
The U.S. plans to send a delegation to the United Arab Emirates this week to discuss sanctions compliance and warn businesses and banks against facilitating Iranian commerce, a State Department spokesperson said. The delegation will be led by Andrea Gacki, director of the Office of Foreign Assets Control, and include other Treasury and State Department officials.
The Office of Foreign Assets Control on Dec. 10 issued a new general license authorizing certain non-commercial, personal remittances to Afghanistan. General License No. 16 authorizes certain transactions involving the Taliban, the Haqqani Network, or any entity they own by 50% or more if those transactions are “ordinarily incident and necessary to the transfer” of personal remittances to Afghanistan.
The United Nations Security Council on Dec. 8 removed two entries from its sanctions list. Designations no longer apply to Mahmud Dhiyab Al-Ahmed and Husam Muhammad Amin Al-Yassin, both Iraqi nationals.
The Office of Foreign Assets Control on Dec. 9 sanctioned seven people and eight entities in Central America, Africa and Europe for corruption. The designations target a multimillion-dollar corruption scheme involving “suspicious procurements” in El Salvador, government corruption in Guatemala and South Sudan, a former warlord in Liberia, a former government official in Ukraine and an embezzlement network in Angola. The U.S. announced the sanctions as part of International Anti-Corruption Day.
The Office of Foreign Assets Control on Dec. 8 sanctioned 16 people and 24 entities for corruption and human rights violations, continuing its string of designations this week under the Global Magnitsky Human Rights Accountability Act (see 2112070058 and 2112060014). The designations target a crime network in Kosovo and their affiliated companies or entities across Europe. OFAC also sanctioned people in El Salvador for helping to coordinate a “secret truce” between the country’s government and gang leaders, including MS-13.
The Office of Foreign Assets Control sanctioned people and entities in Uganda, Iran and Syria for human rights abuses or for undermining democratic institutions. The designations target military or government officials in all three countries as well as two Iranian law enforcement agencies and two Iranian prisons, OFAC said Dec. 7. The U.S. purposefully issued the sanctions just ahead of its democracy summit later this week, which will convene more than 100 of the world’s democracies to discuss collaboration on human rights issues, anti-corruption and more. “Consistent with the goals of this week’s Summit for Democracy, the United States is committed to using its full range of tools to counter serious human rights abuse and repressive acts across the world,” Secretary of State Antony Blinken said.