The Digest:
The United States has frozen the assets and properties of eight Nigerians accused of ties to Boko Haram, the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), and cybercrime. The action, contained in a 3,000-page document dated February 10 from the US Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), names individuals including Salih Yusuf Adamu, convicted in the UAE in 2022 for attempting to send $782,000 to fund Boko Haram, and Boko Haram leaders Abu Musab Al-Barnawi and Khaled Al-Barnawi. Others listed include Abu Abdullah ibn Umar Al-Barnawi, Ibrahim Ali Alhassan, Abu Bakr ibn Muhammad Al-Mainuki (linked to ISIL), Babestan Oluwole Ademulero, and cybercrime-designated Nnamdi Orson Benson. The sanctions block all US-based assets and prohibit Americans from transactions with them .
FULL LIST OF SANCTIONED NIGERIANS:
- Salih Yusuf Adamu (aka Salihu Yusuf) – Boko Haram financing
- Babestan Oluwole Ademulero – Terrorism-related sanctions
- Abu Abdullah ibn Umar Al-Barnawi (aka Ba Idrisa) – Boko Haram
- Abu Musab Al-Barnawi (aka Habib Yusuf) – Boko Haram leader
- Khaled Al-Barnawi (aka Abu Hafsat, Mohammed Usman) – Boko Haram
- Ibrahim Ali Alhassan – Boko Haram, resides in Abu Dhabi
- Abu Bakr ibn Muhammad Al-Mainuki (aka Abu-Bilal Al-Minuki) – ISIL ties
- Nnamdi Orson Benson – Cybercrime (CYBER2 sanctions)
The OFAC designations freeze US-based assets of eight Nigerians, reinforcing Washington's commitment to disrupting terrorism financing and cyber threats originating from Nigeria.
Sources: Punch Newspapers, Vanguard, The Sun Nigeria, OFAC
