America has imposed sanctions on eight people and institutions for promoting civil war in Sudan. These include an Indian citizen associated with an explosives manufacturing company. The US Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) said on Friday that the networks targeted helped both the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) to escalate and intensify the civil war in the African country.
Alok Choudhary of Raipur is also among those facing ban. He is the CEO of SBL Energy Limited (also known as Amin Explosives Private Limited). It is alleged that this company had supplied more than 200 consignments of explosives and related materials to a company that maintains the weapons stockpile of the SAF.
Ban on other companies based in Sudan and Egypt also
The Treasury Department also imposed sanctions on SBL Energy Ltd. and other companies based in Sudan and Egypt. These networks supply weapons, explosives and foreign fighters to both the Sudanese armed forces and the Rapid Support Forces, US State Department spokesman Tommy Pigott said in a statement. Their support has prolonged a conflict that has created the world’s worst humanitarian crisis and given terrorist groups the opportunity to operate.
Allegations against Raipur company SBL Energy?
The US Treasury Department said that Raipur-based company SBL Energy allegedly supplied explosives and related materials to Sudan’s company Target Multiactivities Company (TMAC). The department said that these explosives were later used in bombs planted by the SAF. TMAC and its general manager, senior DIS officer Tariq Hussain Muhammad Madani have also been blacklisted.
According to the US Treasury Department, Defense Industries Systems (DIS), Sudan’s largest defense company, maintains and supports the SAF’s stockpile of weapons, ammunition, vehicles and other equipment. These goods are often obtained from Iran and other external allies.
DIS controls many subsidiary companies
DIS controls several subsidiary companies, including the Sudanese group ‘Ziad Industrial Group’ (Giad) – also known as ‘Sudan Master Technology’. This control is done through complex and obscure structures, from which the company has earned billions of dollars. The US Treasury Department said that DIS’s acquisition of military equipment and related materials has allowed the SAF to continue fighting against the RSF, attack civilians, and hinder them by rejecting attempts to stop or cease fighting.
Ban on DIS and Giad in 2023
The department also said that sanctions were imposed on DIS and Giad in 2023. OFAC has also put ‘Ports Engineering Company Limited’ in the banned list. It is a government civil engineering construction company based in Port Sudan, which was started in 1998.
The company, linked to ‘Sudan Master Technology’, is accused of having ordered military uniforms and shoes for the Sudanese intelligence department from a UAE company, as well as ammunition belts and weapon boxes from a Turkish company, since the conflict began in April 2023.
Recruitment of former soldiers of Colombia
The sanctions also targeted people linked to an international network that recruits former Colombian soldiers to fight with the RSF. Washington has already banned this network led by retired Colombian official Alvaro Andres Quijano Becerra and his wife Claudia Viviana Oliveros Forero.
Three people associated with ‘Talent Bridge, SA’ blacklisted
US authorities have blacklisted three people associated with Panama-based ‘Talent Bridge, SA’. It is alleged that this company was used to hide recruitment activities. Those sanctioned include Panamanian citizens Enrique Daniel Palacios Quintanilla and Jack Peter Derman Guzman, and Colombian citizen Freddy Alejandro Lopez Ocampo. All of them were holding executive or manager positions in the company.
Leave a Reply