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US Treasury Depart. Sanctions Three ‘Terrorist Facilitators’ Based in Pakistan
“We are targeting operatives who have provided logistical support, improvised explosive devices, and other technological assistance to [al Qaeda], Lashkar-e Tayyiba, the Taliban, and other terrorist groups,” Sigal Mandelker, Treasury’s Under Secretary for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence, said in a statement.
Washington has also called on Islamabad to crack down the terrorist networks, which has operated on Pakistani soil for years.
“We call on the Pakistani government and others in the region to work with us to deny sanctuary to these dangerous individuals and organizations,” Mandelker said.
The three newly-designated men are identified as Rahman Zeb Faqir Muhammad, Hizb Ullah Astam Khan and Dilawar Khan Nadir Khan.
All three were tied to Shaykh Aminullah, a well-known backer of Al-Qaeda, Lashkar-e-Taiba and the Taliban, who has been on international terror blacklists since 2009.
Rahman Zeb, has been in charge of raising funds and materials for Lashkar-e-Taiba in the Gulf region, and helped Shaykh Aminullah travel to the Gulf in 2014. According to the U.S. Treasury, as of mid-2014, Zeb was a long-standing contact of LeT members involved in Afghan operations, and he was involved in business activities with an LeT commander responsible for the group’s operations in Afghanistan.
Hizb Ullah, has “served as a financial official of a Peshawar-based madrassa that was co-founded by Shaykh Aminullah.” He “previously worked for Shaykh Aminullah as an improvised explosive device (IED) expert in Kunar Province, Afghanistan, where he deployed IEDs targeting Afghan and Coalition forces.” Hizb Ullah also helped ship “IED precursor chemicals supplied from Pakistan to Afghanistan for U.S.-designated terrorist groups, including the Taliban and Jama’at ul Dawa al-Qu’ran (JDQ).”
Dilawar, has served as Shaykh Aminullah’s assistant, arranging his travel around Pakistan and handling his correspondent and financial transactions.