US Announces Syria Sanctions, Issues General License
The U.S. sanctioned 20 people and entities for supporting Syria’s Bashar al-Assad regime and issued a new general license and frequently asked question. The sanctions, announced by the Office of Foreign Assets Control and the State Department Sept. 30, target Assad regime officials, military officials, financiers and their businesses.
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The designations include Khodr Taher Bin Ali, a Syrian businessman who works as a contractor for the Fourth Division of the Syrian Arab Army, along with his companies. One of his sanctioned businesses is Emma Tel LLC, which sells mobile phone equipment and related services in more than 20 locations in Syria. OFAC also sanctioned Husam Muhammad Louka, the head of the Syrian General Intelligence Directorate, and Hazem Younes Karfoul, the governor of the Central Bank of Syria. The State Department's designations include Milad Jedid, commander of the 5th Corps of the Syrian Arab Army, and Nasreen Ibrahim and Rana Ibrahim, the adult sisters of Assad financier Yasser Ibrahim.
OFAC issued General License No. 20, which authorizes certain “wind down” transactions with Emma Tel and any company it controls by 50% or more. Those transactions are authorized through 12:01 a.m. EST on Dec. 30. FAQ 841 provides more information on the general license and clarifies that non-U.S. persons may also wind down transactions with Emma Tel under the license. The FAQ also clarifies that wind-down transactions involving non-U.S. persons “may be processed through the U.S. financial system or involve U.S. persons” if the transactions comply with the license. People who are unable to wind down their transactions by the deadline “are encouraged to seek guidance from OFAC.”