The U.S. Department of the Treasury today targeted a key Hizballah support network based in Africa. Mustapha Fawaz, Fouzi Fawaz, and Abdallah Tahini have been designated pursuant to Executive Order (E.O.) 13224 for acting for or on behalf of Hizballah. Amigo Supermarket Limited, Wonderland Amusement Park and Resort Ltd, and Kafak Enterprises Limited have also been designated pursuant to E.O. 13224 for being owned or controlled by Mustapha Fawaz and Fouzi Fawaz. Mustapha Fawaz has been a significant donor to Hizballah and is also a member of Hizballah’s Islamic Jihad Organization (IJO). In mid-May 2013, the Nigerian State Security Service detained Mustapha Fawaz for his affiliation with Hizballah. Mustapha Fawaz reportedly confessed the details of Hizballah activities in Nigeria and identified additional names of other Hizballah IJO cell members in Nigeria, as well as a specific property in Kano, Nigeria that was used to support terrorism. As of mid-September 2003, Mustapha Fawaz solicited donations in Abuja, Nigeria, and helped arrange the transmission of these funds to Hizballah in Lebanon.
Since the 1990s, Mustapha Fawaz has been involved in activities related to communications, surveillance, and reporting for Hizballah. He communicated with Hizballah in Lebanon by e-mail and reportedly received updates and newsletters regarding Hizballah activities and distributed this information to other Hizballah supporters in Abuja. He used special surveillance cameras based at Amigo Supermarket to monitor the movements of expatriates, especially Israelis. He also provided Hizballah with a report of his visit to the U.S. Embassy in Nigeria.
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”).
