US sanctions Lankan magnate for links with Al-Qaeda

The U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) designated two business associates of a sanctioned al-Qa’ida financial facilitator and external operations plotter, where one of them is a Sri Lankan.

The two individuals designated today are Mohamad Irshad Mohamad Haris Nizar(Sri Lankan) and Musab Turkmen (Turkish), who conducted businesses activities to assist Ahmed Luqman Talib (Talib), who was previously designated by OFAC for facilitating the international movement of individuals and finances in furtherance of al-Qa’ida’s objectives.

Mohamad Irshad Mohamad Haris Nizar (Nizar) is a Sri Lanka-based business partner of Talib. As of mid-2018, Talib and Nizar were joint representatives of the same business.

Nizar has been Talib’s business partner in Sri Lanka since at least late 2018. Their business dealings in Sri Lanka have generated nearly $200,000 per year in profit; the majority of Talib’s income was derived from one-third of those proceeds. Nizar is also a relative of Talib.

All property and interests in property of the individuals named above, and of any entities that are owned, directly or indirectly, 50 percent or more by them, individually, or with other blocked persons, that are in the United States or in the possession or control of U.S. persons must be blocked and reported to OFAC.