Colombia

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EU

EU (Foreign) Terrorist Organizations

July 18, 2011 - The EU Council has concluded that the following groups and entities listed have been involved in terrorist acts within the meaning of Article 1(2) and (3) of Common Position 2001/931/CFSP, that a decision has been taken with respect to them by a competent authority within the meaning of Article 1(4) of that Common Position, and that they should continue to be subject to the specific restrictive measures provided for therein.

More information on the EU FTO page.

UK

February 06, 2012 - General Notice of Renewal of Final Designations - Terrorist Asset-Freezing etc. Act 2010

Entities

  1. EJERCITO DE LIBERACION NACIONAL (ELN) a.k.a: National Liberation Army Other Information: Both UK listing and EU listing
  2. FUERZAS ARMADAS REVOLUCIONARIAS DE COLOMBIA a.k.a: (1) FARC (2) Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia Other Information: Both UK listing and EU listing

UK Sanctions

US

OFAC

February 20, 2013 - Action Targets Colombian Drug Trafficking Organization Tied to the FARC

The U.S. Department of the Treasury today announced the designation of Colombian national Jose Evaristo Linares Castillo as a Specially Designated Narcotics Trafficker (SDNT) pursuant to the Foreign Narcotics Kingpin Designation Act (Kingpin Act). Jose Evaristo Linares Castillo leads a Villavicencio, Colombia-based drug trafficking organization that oversees the manufacturing and air smuggling of thousands of kilograms of cocaine from Colombia and Venezuela, through Central America into Mexico, and then, ultimately, into the United States.

Through his partnership with the Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias de Colombia (the “FARC”), a U.S.-designated narco-terrorist organization, and previous relationships with major Colombian traffickers Daniel Barrera Barrera and Pedro Oliveiro Guerrero Castillo, Linares Castillo has become one of the largest cocaine sources for drug-laden aircraft departing from Apure, Venezuela to Central America. In Central America, Honduran and Guatemalan criminal organizations handle the logistics of receiving and transporting the drug loads out of Central America and into Mexico for further distribution to Mexican drug trafficking organizations such as Los Zetas and the Sinaloa Cartel. The Kingpin Act generally prohibits U.S. persons from conducting financial or commercial transactions with this individual and freezes any assets the designee may have under U.S. jurisdiction.

“The Linares Castillo organization is a significant source of supply for multiple violent drug cartels that exploit vulnerable Central American countries as key transit points for the shipment of narcotics into Mexico for further distribution into the United States,” said the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) Director Adam J. Szubin. “We continue to aggressively target key transporters and logistic coordinators for one of the most strategic drug routes between Central and South America.”

Jose Evaristo Linares Castillo was arrested by Colombian authorities on May 25, 2012, and is currently pending extradition to the United States. He is charged in two separate U.S. district courts for drug trafficking and related offenses. On June 14, 2011, the Southern District of Florida issued a superseding indictment charging Linares Castillo with drug trafficking and multiple money laundering offenses. On July 5, 2012, the Southern District of New York issued a superseding indictment charging Linares Castillo with multiple drug trafficking, narco-terrorism and material support offenses.

Today's action would not have been possible without support from the Drug Enforcement Administration and the United States Attorneys’ Offices in New York City and Miami. Since June 2000, the President has identified 97 drug kingpins, and OFAC has designated more than 1,200 businesses and individuals, pursuant to the Kingpin Act. Penalties for violations of the Kingpin Act range from civil penalties of up to $1.075 million per violation to more severe criminal penalties. Criminal penalties for corporate officers may include up to 30 years in prison and fines of up to $5 million. Criminal fines for corporations may reach $10 million. Other individuals face up to 10 years in prison and fines for criminal violation of the Kingpin Act pursuant to Title 18 of the United States Code.

The following individual has been added to OFAC's SDN List:

OFAC Recent Actions & US Department of the Treasury Press Release

January 30, 2013 - Treasury Sanctions Colombian Criminal Organization and Drug Lord - Action Targets Los Rastrojos Organization and Drug Lord Diego Perez Henao

The U.S. Department of the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) today designated the Colombian criminal organization, Los Rastrojos, and drug trafficker, Diego Perez Henao (alias “Diego Rastrojo”), as Specially Designated Narcotics Traffickers (SDNTs) pursuant to the Foreign Narcotics Kingpin Designation Act (Kingpin Act). This action, taken pursuant to the Kingpin Act, generally prohibits U.S. persons from conducting financial or commercial transactions with this individual and organization, and also freezes any assets either may have under U.S. jurisdiction.

“By targeting this violent criminal organization currently operating in Colombia, Ecuador, and Venezuela, we are taking steps to expose their activities and undermine their operations,” said OFAC Director Adam J. Szubin. “OFAC will use these sanctions against key leaders and facilitators of this criminal organization so long as they continue their criminal behavior.”

Los Rastrojos emerged from the now extinct Cali and North Valle drug cartels in Colombia. It is a network of armed drug trafficking groups operating in Colombia, Ecuador, and Venezuela that manufactures, transports, and protects cocaine loads as well as directs extortion and debt collections. Colombian authorities refer to criminal organizations like Los Rastrojos as “Bandas Criminales” or BACRIM, which are organized groups of drug traffickers as well as former paramilitary and guerrilla members of the United Self-Defense Groups of Colombia (AUC), the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC), and the National Liberation Army (ELN).

Diego Perez Henao has been involved in drug trafficking and other criminal activity for over twenty years; having started as a cocaine laboratory operator and then rising in notoriety due to his association with notable North Valle drug cartel leaders such as Wilber Varela, Jaime Alberto Marin Zamora, and the Calle Serna brothers, Javier Antonio and Luis Enrique, all previously designated as SDNTs by OFAC. Perez Henao operated Los Rastrojos drug trafficking organization throughout the North Valley region of Colombia, as well as the Pacific coastal regions of western Colombia. He was the main source of supply for numerous multi-ton loads of cocaine smuggled into the U.S., owning and coordinating airborne and maritime cocaine shipments destined for the U.S. through Venezuela to Guatemala, Honduras, and Mexico. He was arrested in June 2012 in Venezuela and extradited to Colombia in July 2012, where he is facing numerous criminal charges. In addition, a Federal Grand Jury in the Southern District of Florida has indicted Perez Henao; charging him with conspiring to manufacture and distribute cocaine into the U.S. Despite the June 2012 arrest of Perez Henao, Los Rastrojos still operates today.

Today’s action, supported by the Drug Enforcement Administration, is part of OFAC’s ongoing efforts under the Kingpin Act to apply financial measures against significant foreign narcotics traffickers worldwide. Since June 2000 the President has identified 97 drug kingpins and OFAC has designated more than 1,200 businesses and individuals. Penalties for violations of the Kingpin Act range from civil penalties of up to $1.075 million per violation to more severe criminal penalties. Criminal penalties for corporate officers may include up to 30 years in prison and fines of up to $5 million. Criminal fines for corporations may reach $10 million. Other individuals face up to 10 years in prison and fines for criminal violation of the Kingpin Act pursuant to Title 18 of the United States Code.

To view a chart of Los Rastrojos and Diego Perez Henao, click here - US Department of the Treasury Press Release

January 30, 2013 - Kingpin Act Designations​; Kingpin Act Designations​ Removals; Counter Narcotics Designation Removals

Specially Designated Nationals List Update

The following individual has been added to OFAC's SDN List:

The following entity has been added to OFAC's SDN List:

The following deletions have been made to OFAC's SDN List:

OFAC Recent Actions

December 19, 2012 - Kingpin Act Designation Removals​; Anti-Narcotics Designations Removals

The following deletions have been made to OFAC's SDN List:

OFAC Recent Actions

Major drug-producing or drug-transit country

September 15, 2011 - Under the Foreign Relations Authorization Act (FAA), the President is required each year to notify Congress of those countries he determines to be major illicit drug-producing countries or major drug-transit countries that significantly affect the United States. A country’s presence on the list does not necessarily reflect its counternarcotics efforts or its level of cooperation on illegal drug control with the United States. The designation can reflect a combination of geographic, commercial, and economic factors that allow drugs to be produced and/or trafficked through a country.

When a country on the list does not fulfill its obligations under international counter-narcotics agreements and conventions, the President determines that the country has failed demonstrably to meet its counterdrug obligations, only Bolivia, Burma, and Venezuela, failed demonstrably. Such a designation can lead to sanctions. However, the President may also execute a waiver when he determines there is a vital national interest in continuing U.S. assistance. Even without such a waiver, humanitarian assistance and counternarcotics assistance may continue.

TCO

Transnational Criminal Organizations - TCO

July 25, 2011 - President Obama has signed an Executive Order imposing sanctions against significant transnational criminal organizations (TCO's). The Order provides the United States with new tools to break the economic power of transnational organized crime and protect financial markets. It will assist the Administration’s efforts to disrupt, dismantle and defeat the TCO's that pose a significant threat to U.S. national security, foreign policy or the economy.

As a result of this Order, any property in the United States or in the possession or control of U.S. persons in which the significant TCO's listed in the Annex have an interest is blocked, and U.S. persons are prohibited from engaging in transactions with them.

The Order also authorizes the U.S. Department of the Treasury, in consultation with the Departments of Justice and State, to identify for sanctions any individual or entity determined to have materially assisted, sponsored or provided financial, material or technological support for any person whose property and interests in property are blocked pursuant to this Order.

The US encourage partners and allies to echo the commitment and join in building a new framework for international cooperation to protect all our citizens from the violence, harm and exploitation wrought by transnational organized crime.

In signing today’s Order, the President imposed sanctions on the following organizations listed:

More information on the Transnational Criminal Organizations page.

June 05, 2013 - Transnational Criminal Organizations Designations - Mara Salvatrucha Leaders aka MS13

The Mara Salvatrucha gang originated in Los Angeles and has spread to Central America, other parts of the United States, and Canada. It is commonly abbreviated as MS, Mara, and MS-13. There is some dispute about the etymology of the name. The most common belief is that the word "Mara" refers to the Spanish word for "gang", and "Salvatrucha" (which is Spanish slang) for "Salvadoran army ant". Alternatively, it is suggested that "Salvatrucha" refers to the Salvadoran peasant guerrillas, the source of much of the gang's early manpower. The number 13 is homage to the Los Angeles gang "Los Emes" or "The Ms"(M being the thirteenth letter of the alphabet). The gang was set up in Los Angeles in 1980's by Salvadoran immigrants in the city's Pico-Union neighborhood. Source: Urban Dictionary

Please visit this chart for more information on these designations.

The following individuals have been added to OFAC's SDN List:

OFAC Recent Actions

US Foreign Terrorist Organizations

September 28, 2012 - Delisting of the Mujahedin-e Khalq - The Secretary of State has decided, consistent with the law, to revoke the designation of the Mujahedin-e Khalq (MEK) and its aliases as a Foreign Terrorist Organization (FTO) under the Immigration and Nationality Act and to delist the MEK as a Specially Designated Global Terrorist under Executive Order 13224. These actions are effective today. Property and interests in property in the United States or within the possession or control of U.S. persons will no longer be blocked, and U.S. entities may engage in transactions with the MEK without obtaining a license. These actions will be published in the Federal Register.

With today’s actions, the Department does not overlook or forget the MEK’s past acts of terrorism, including its involvement in the killing of U.S. citizens in Iran in the 1970s and an attack on U.S. soil in 1992. The Department also has serious concerns about the MEK as an organization, particularly with regard to allegations of abuse committed against its own members.

The Secretary’s decision today took into account the MEK’s public renunciation of violence, the absence of confirmed acts of terrorism by the MEK for more than a decade, and their cooperation in the peaceful closure of Camp Ashraf, their historic paramilitary base.

The United States has consistently maintained a humanitarian interest in seeking the safe, secure, and humane resolution of the situation at Camp Ashraf, as well as in supporting the United Nations-led efforts to relocate eligible former Ashraf residents outside of Iraq.

US Department of State Press Release & OFAC Resource Center

September 21, 2012 - U.S. to remove Iran group (Mujahedin-e Khalq) from terror list, officials say WaPo News Item

Augustus 30, 2012 - Anti-Terrorism Designations (SDGT) - US designates eight Lashkar-e-Taiba leaders as terrorists, places sanctions

LET was designated by the Department of State as a Foreign Terrorist Organization (FTO) and under E.O. 13224 as a Specially Designated Global Terrorist entity in December 2001. LET was added to the UN 1267/1989 Committee's Consolidated List – its list of sanctioned terrorists – in May 2005.

Despite being banned by the Government of Pakistan in January 2002, LET continues to operate in Pakistan and throughout the region and engage in or support terrorist activities worldwide. LET has conducted numerous terrorist acts against Pakistani, Indian, Afghan, and U.S. interests and is responsible for the November 2008 Mumbai attacks that killed more than 160 people, including six Americans, and the July 2006 Mumbai train bombings that killed more than 180 people.

All of the individuals designated today pursuant to E.O. 13224 were designated for acting on behalf of or providing support either to LET itself or to previously designated members of LET. Today’s action prohibits U.S. persons from engaging in any transactions with these individuals and freezes any assets the designees have under U.S. jurisdiction.

The following individuals have been added to OFAC's SDN List:

OFAC Recent Actions

May 24, 2012 - Terrorist Designations of the Abdallah Azzam Brigades

The Department of State designated the Abdallah Azzam Brigades (AAB) as a Foreign Terrorist Organization (FTO) under Section 219 of the Immigration and Nationality Act and as a Specially Designated Global Terrorist under section 1(b) of Executive Order 13224. The Abdallah Azzam Brigades (AAB), a militant organization based in both Lebanon and the Arabian Peninsula, was formed in 2009. AAB is led by Saleh al-Qar’awi, who was designated by the Department of State under E.O. 13224. The Department of State also designated AAB’s bomb maker, Abu Jabal, under E.O. 13224 on November 22, 2011.

AAB carried out a July 2010 attack on the Japanese-owned oil tanker M/V M.Star in the Strait of Hormuz. According to a statement released online, AAB claimed that the attack was carried out by its Arabian Peninsula Branch, which calls itself the Yusuf al-’Uyayri Battalions of the Abdullah Azzam Brigades. AAB has repeatedly articulated its intent to carry out attacks against Western interests in the Middle East. In 2010, for instance, the group expressed an interest in kidnapping U.S. and British tourists in the Arabian Peninsula.

In addition, AAB is responsible for numerous indiscriminate rocket attacks on Israeli civilians. These attacks, which have been launched from within Lebanon by the Ziyad al-Jarrah Battalions of the Abdallah Azzam Brigades, have targeted population centers in northern Israel.

The consequences of these designations include a prohibition against knowingly providing material support or resources to, or engaging in transactions with, the Abdallah Azzam Brigades, and the freezing of all property and interest in property of the organization that are in the United States, or come within the United States, or the control of U.S. persons. The Department of State took these actions in consultation with the Departments of Justice and Treasury.

US Department of State Press Release

June 18, 2011 - Foreign Terrorist Organizations (FTO) are foreign organizations that are designated by the Secretary of State in accordance with section 219 of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA), as amended. FTO designations play a critical role in our fight against terrorism and are an effective means of curtailing support for terrorist activities and pressuring groups to get out of the terrorism business.

More information on the US FTO page.

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