Abdirahman Mohamed Omar (Omar) is an ISIS-Somalia member and arms smuggler in the Dhofaye-Laboballe-Buruj Farah partnership — a triad of arms dealers smuggling weapons from Yemen to Somalia — and the Qandala-Hafun network. As of 2020, Omar was considered the most active illicit arms importer in Puntland, Somalia, and has executed more than $2 million worth of transactions over a four-year period. Omar has been involved in weapons facilitation to ISIS-Somalia and al-Shabaab since at least early 2017 and has worked closely with AQAP facilitator Sayf Abdulrab Salem al-Hayashi (al-Hayashi), who was designated as an SDGT pursuant to E.O. 13224 on October 25, 2017. Following al-Hayashi’s designation, Omar sent money to al-Hayashi on several occasions, amounting to nearly $300,000.
In mid-2020, Omar facilitated a weapons shipment to ISIS-Somalia from a member of the Islamic State in Yemen. As of mid-2021, Omar arranged and procured a shipment of weapons from Ash Shihr, Yemen, at the request of ISIS-Somalia members in Ba’ad, Somalia. This shipment contained more than 30 G3 rifles from Iran, more than 30 boxes of machine guns and rifles, improvised explosive device (IED) initiators, AK-47 assault rifles, PK machine guns (PKMs), and rocket-propelled grenade (RPG) ammunition rounds. As of late 2021, Omar operates out of the Port of Bacaad in Bari, Somalia. Omar smuggles AK-47 assault rifles, PKMs, and DShK machine guns out of Yemen on a dhow — a sailing vessel used for regional trade and capable of carrying heavy loads — and conceals them under ice and fish. Once in port, Omar contacts Ahmed Haji Ali Haji Omar, also designated today, to load the weapons onto camels and donkeys, where they are concealed in white sugar and rice sacks. The weapons are then transported at night to the Qandala Mountains, where they are picked up by members of ISIS-Somalia and al-Shabaab.
Additionally, Omar has been in contact with companies that engage in illegal, unregulated, and unreported (IUU) fishing, and were also part of a forced labor fishing operation.
Omar is 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, ISIS-Somalia.
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”).
