The United States Thursday designated four South Asian Al-Qaeda (AQIS) and Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) leaders as terrorists and expressed commitment to using a full set of counterterrorism tools to counter the threat posed by terrorist groups operating in Afghanistan.
In a statement issued by Secretary of State Antony Blinken stated that the Department of State designated four AQIS and TTP leaders as “Specially Designated Global Terrorists” (SDGTs) under Executive Order 13224 for their leadership roles in their respective groups.
The list includes Osama Mehmood, the emir of AQIS; Atif Yahya Ghouri, the deputy emir of AQIS; Muhammad Maruf, responsible for AQIS’ recruiting branch; and Qari Amjad, the deputy emir of TTP, who oversees operations and militants in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Province.
Blinken added that the United States is committed to using its full set of counterterrorism tools to counter the threat posed by terrorist groups operating in Afghanistan, including the AQIS and the TTP, to ensure that terrorists do not use Afghanistan as a platform for international terrorism.
As a result of these actions, all property and interests in the property of these four terrorists that are subject to the jurisdiction of the US are blocked.
“All U.S. persons are generally prohibited from engaging in any transactions with them,” Blinken warned.
He added that these actions again demonstrate that the US will continue to use all relevant tools to uphold our commitment to see to it that international terrorists are not able to operate with impunity in Afghanistan.
