142429197807090035, National ID No.;
EB8537291, Passport
Official reason
Today, the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) is designating and identifying as blocked property a dozen persons and vessels, respectively, that have played a critical role in financing the Houthis’ destabilizing regional activities as part of the network of Sa’id al-Jamal. Today’s action includes Indonesia-based Malaysian and Singaporean national Mohammad Roslan Bin Ahmad and People’s Republic of China (PRC)-based Chinese national Zhuang Liang, who have facilitated illicit shipments and engaged in money laundering for the network. Sa’id al-Jamal’s network continues to provide tens of millions of dollars in revenue to the Houthis in Yemen through its shipment of Iranian commodities, including oil, a funding stream underpinning the Houthis’ ongoing attacks against commercial shipping in the Red Sea. This action targets numerous aspects of this illicit network across the spectrum of its operations, from clients and facilitators to insurance providers, vessels, and ship management firms. PRC-based businessman Zhuang Liang (Zhuang) has engaged in money laundering and other finance-related schemes for the Sai’d al-Jamal network, including working with Sa’id al-Jamal and the IRGC-QF to further Sa’id al-Jamal’s illicit business operations. Zhuang has similarly assisted Sa’id al-Jamal business partner and Houthi-affiliate Abdi Nasir Ali Mahamud (Mahamud) in circumventing sanctions by illicitly providing him access to the international financial system.
OFAC designated Mahamud concurrently with Sa’id al-Jamal for having materially assisted, sponsored, or provided financial, material, or technological support for, or goods or services to or in support of, Sa’id al-Jamal. Today, OFAC is updating Mahamud’s entry on the Specially Designated Nationals and Blocked Persons List (SDN List) to reflect his use of a Somali diplomatic passport, D00015633, to travel internationally. Sa’id al-Jamal has similarly traveled under the alias Ahmad Saeidi with Iran-issued passports U63475649 and E49297849, each of which is also being added to the SDN List today.
Zhuang and Royston are being designated pursuant to E.O. 13224, as amended, for having materially assisted, sponsored, or provided financial, material, or technological support for, or goods or services to or in support of, Sa’id al-Jamal.
On June 6, 2003, OFAC issued the Global Terrorism Sanctions Regulations, 31 CFR part 594 (68 FR 34196, June 6, 2003 (“the Regulations”), to implement Executive Order (E.O.) 13224 of September 23, 2001, “Blocking Property and Prohibiting Transactions With Persons Who Commit, Threaten To Commit, or Support Terrorism” (66 FR 49079, September 25, 2001). OFAC has amended the Regulations on several occasions.
On September 9, 2019, the President, invoking the authority of, inter alia, the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (50 U.S.C. 1701–1706) (IEEPA) and the United Nations Participation Act (22 U.S.C. 287c) (UNPA), issued E.O. 13886, “Modernizing Sanctions To Combat Terrorism” (84 FR 48041, September 12, 2019), effective September 10, 2019. In E.O. 13886, the President, finding it necessary to consolidate and enhance sanctions to combat acts of terrorism and threats of terrorism by foreign terrorists, terminated the national emergency declared in E.O. 12947 of January 23, 1995, “Prohibiting Transactions With Terrorists Who Threaten To Disrupt the Middle East Peace Process” (60 FR 5079, January 25, 1995), and revoked E.O. 12947, as amended by E.O. 13099 of August 20, 1998, “Prohibiting Transactions With Terrorists Who Threaten To Disrupt the Middle East Peace Process” (63 FR 45167, August 25, 1998). In addition, the President amended E.O. 13224, in order to build upon initial steps taken in E.O. 12947, to further strengthen and consolidate sanctions to combat the continuing threat posed by international terrorism, and in order to take additional steps to deal with the national emergency declared in E.O. 13224, with respect to the continuing and immediate threat of grave acts of terrorism and threats of terrorism committed by foreign terrorists, which include acts of terrorism that threaten the Middle East peace process.
Section 1 of E.O. 13886 replaces in its entirety section 1 of E.O. 13224, which had been amended by a number of prior Executive orders (E.O. 13224, as amended by all such authorities, is referred to herein as “amended E.O. 13224”), but does not amend the Annex to E.O. 13224, which was previously amended by E.O. 13268 of July 2, 2002, “Termination of Emergency With Respect to the Taliban and Amendment of Executive Order 13224 of September 23, 2001” (67 FR 44751, July 3, 2002) (“amended Annex to E.O. 13224”).
