The US Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) designated a Turkish company and its owner as “Specially Designated Global Terrorists” on Friday for providing material and technological support for Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL).
The action, taken on February 9, 2018 identified Yunus Emre Sakarya, a dual German and Turkish national, and its Ankara-based company Profesyoneller Elektronik as “assisting in, sponsoring, or providing financial, material, or technological support for, or financial or other services to or in support of, ISIS.”
“Sakarya has served as a key facilitator involved in the procurement of unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) components for ISIS since at least 2015. Sakarya created in 2015 and has operated a Turkey-based company, Profesyoneller Elektronik, that serves as an ISIL front company involved in the procurement of UAV-related materials. Specifically, in early-to-mid-2016, Profesyoneller Elektronik was involved in transactions for UAV-related equipment that totaled over $500,000 for ISIS,” OFAC said in a statement,
OFAC’s designation targets ISIL’s global facilitation network by designating individuals and entities as Specially Designated Global Terrorists pursuant to Executive Order (E.O.) 13224, which targets terrorists and those providing support to terrorists or acts of terrorism.
“These actions are part of a continued whole-of-government effort to identify and expose individuals and entities that provide support to ISIS and advance the violent terrorist group’s operational activity. As a result of today’s designations, all property and interests in property of these persons subject to US jurisdiction are blocked, and US persons are generally prohibited from engaging in transactions with them,” the statement said.
“The Administration is committed to defeating ISIS [another name for ISIL] wherever it operates, denigrating its illicit revenue streams, and pursuing all financial conduits,” said Sigal Mandelker, Treasury Under Secretary for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence.
“Each individual and entity targeted has contributed to the spread of ISIS’s terror reach in their respective corner of the world. Treasury will continue to relentlessly target ISIS support networks, and ensure that the US and international financial systems are not being exploited by terror operatives,” Sigal added.
