US sanctions on Mozambique and DRC

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·        The United States has designated rebel groups in Mozambique and the Democratic Republic of Congo as foreign terrorist organizations, a tag that would keep the countries under the US sanctioned list

·        According to the US State Department, the DRC’s Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) and Madina at Tauheed Wau Mujahedeen  are affiliated to the jihadist group Islamic State (ISIS)

·        It further added that Al Ansar al-Sunna, locally known as al-Shabaab in Mozambique, was also affiliated to the Islamic State group, making the Southern African country attract US sanctions

The United States has designated rebel groups in Mozambique and the Democratic Republic of Congo as foreign terrorist organizations, a tag that would keep the countries under the US sanctioned list. According to the US State Department, the DRC’s Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) and Madina at Tauheed Wau Mujahedeen  are affiliated to the jihadist group Islamic State (ISIS). It further added that Al Ansar al-Sunna, locally known as al-Shabaab in Mozambique, was also affiliated to the Islamic State group, making the Southern African country attract US sanctions.

Among other consequences being under the sanctions include  all property and interests in property of those designated that are subject to US jurisdiction are blocked, and US persons are generally prohibited from engaging in any transactions with them.

The DRC’s ADF and Medina at Tauheed Wau Mujahedeen groups are just two of several rebel groups operating in the east of the country, which is responsible for attacks in North Kivu and Ituri Provinces. At least 849 civilians were killed in ADF attacks last year in North Kivu province in February alone. In Mozambique, the Ansar al-Sunna group, a militant outfit,   has carried out several attacks in the gas-rich Cabo Delgado province, killing over 1,300 civilians have been killed since October 2017 and almost 67,000 have been displaced.