US sanctions three, including two based in SA, for expanding Isis in Africa

The United States (US) government has imposed sanctions on three individuals – two of whom are based in South Africa – accused of expanding Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (Isis) activities in Africa.

The US Department of State said the three individuals are key financiers and enablers of Isis activities across central, eastern, and southern Africa.

According to the country, Isis leaders in South Africa historically used robbery, extortion, and kidnapping for ransom operations to generate funds for the group. 

“They serve as critical links between far-flung Isis operations, allowing Isis leadership to leverage each affiliate’s capabilities to undermine peace and security in the region,” said US Department of State spokesperson Matthew Miller in a statement on Tuesday.

“Their destabilising impact spans much of sub-Saharan Africa, which underscores the need for the international community to continue to work together to share information on transnational Isis networks, their evolving financial methods, and measures to combat them.”

Threat to regional security and stability

The US Department of Treasury said the sanctions are due to the threat Isis poses to regional security and stability in central, eastern, and southern Africa.

“Treasury has targeted Isis’s efforts to expand operations and raise funds on the African continent with designations of South Africa-based Isis operatives, financial facilitators, and their business networks on 1 March 2022 and 7 November 2022, and a designation of a key Somalia-based Isis finance official on 27 July 2023,” the department said.

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The sanctioned individuals are Abubakar Swalleh, who is based in South Africa and Zambia; Zayd Gangat, based in South Africa; and Hamidah Nabagala, who is based in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC).

Generating funds through crimes

According to the US Department of Treasury, Swalleh is an Isis operative who is involved in the physical transfer of funds from South Africa to the DRC.

Additionally, Swalleh allegedly facilitates the movement of Isis-affiliated people from Uganda to South Africa and vice versa.

“Mohamed Ali Nkalubo, a DRC-based Isis commander previously designated by the Department of State on 8 December 2023, relies on Swalleh to move funds and recruit members for Isis’s DRC affiliate. Swalleh moved to South Africa under Nkalubo’s direction, where he has been involved in robberies and kidnap for ransom,” the US Department of Treasury said.

Gangat is an alleged Isis facilitator and trainer.

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Nabagala allegedly serves as an intermediary for Isis financial flows in central Africa. She allegedly funded the October 2021 Kampala bombing, which killed one and injured three others.

“In 2021, Ugandan authorities arrested an Isis operative who had received funding from Nabagala. She also sought to smuggle her three children out of Uganda to send them to Isis-affiliated camps in the DRC,” the department said.

Implications of sanctions

Due to the sanctions, assets and interests in assets that the three directly or indirectly own 50% or more of that is in the US or under the control of US citizens, must be blocked and reported to the US Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC).

According to OFAC regulations, certain prohibitions also apply to non-Americans. For example, it is against the law for non-Americans to engage in activities that violate US sanctions or to encourage US citizens to breach US sanctions, whether knowingly or unknowingly.

“Today’s action underscores the crucial work of the Counter Isis Finance Group and the importance of effective information sharing among coalition countries to target Isis’s facilitation networks,” said Undersecretary of the Treasury for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence Brian E. Nelson.

“While we have made considerable progress over the nearly 10 years since the establishment of this working group, we must all remain vigilant because Isis continues to develop new financial methods.”

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