Dhar, a British Hindu who converted to Islam and now goes by the name Abu Rumaysah, had skipped police bail in the UK to travel to Syria with his wife and young children in 2014.
The US today designated Indian-origin Islamic State militant from Britain Siddhartha Dhar along with a Belgian-Moroccan citizen as global terrorists and imposed sanctions on them, the State Department said.
Dhar, a British Hindu who converted to Islam and now goes by the name Abu Rumaysah, had skipped police bail in the UK to travel to Syria with his wife and young children in 2014.
Nihad Barakat, a Yazidi teenager held as a sex slave by ISIS, was quoted as saying by the Independent in May 2016 that she was kidnapped and trafficked by Dhar, who was based in Mosul, the groups former stronghold in Iraq.
Dhar was dubbed as the "New Jihadi John" and became a senior commander of the dreaded outfit, the report had said.
The State Department has designated two ISIS members, Siddhartha Dhar and Abdelatif Gaini, as Specially Designated Global Terrorists under Section 1(b) of Executive Order which also imposes sanctions on foreign persons determined to have committed, or pose a significant risk of committing, acts of terrorism that threaten the security of US nationals or the national security, foreign policy, or economy of the US, a state department spokesperson said in a statement.
These designations seek to deny Dhar and Gaini the resources they need to plan and carry out further terrorist attacks, it said.
Among other consequences, all of Dhars and Gainis property and interests in property subject to US jurisdiction are blocked, and US persons are generally prohibited from engaging in any transactions with them, it said.
Dhar was a leading member of now-defunct terrorist organisation Al-Muhajiroun. In late 2014, Dhar left the United Kingdom to travel to Syria to join ISIS, it said.
He is considered to have replaced ISIS executioner Mohammad Emwazi, also known as "Jihadi John", it said.
Dhar is believed to be the masked leader who appeared in a January 2016 ISIS video of the execution of several prisoners ISIS accused of spying for the UK, the statement said.
Gaini is a Belgian-Moroccan citizen believed to be fighting for ISIS in the Middle East. Gaini is connected to UK-based ISIS sympathizers Mohamad Ali Ahmed and Humza Ali, who were convicted in the UK in 2016 of terrorism offenses, it said.
Todays action notifies the US public and the international community that Dhar and Gaini have committed or pose a significant risk of committing acts of terrorism, it said.
Terrorism designations expose and isolate organizations and individuals, and deny them access to the US financial system. Moreover, designations can assist the law enforcement activities of US agencies and other governments, it said.
Who is Siddhartha Dhar? Why did the US designate him as a terrorist?
The United States has designated an Indian-origin British citizen, Siddhartha Dhar, as a global terrorist after the country identified him as the Islamic State (IS) executioner in Syria who was was seen in videos carrying out beheadings.
According to the US State Department, Dhar "is believed to be the masked leader who appeared in a January 2016 IS video of the execution of several prisoners" who were accused by it of spying for Britain.
HERE ARE 10 THINGS TO KNOW ABOUT SIDDHARTHA DHAR:
(Source: India Today)
The US today designated Indian-origin Islamic State militant from Britain Siddhartha Dhar along with a Belgian-Moroccan citizen as global terrorists and imposed sanctions on them, the State Department said.
Dhar, a British Hindu who converted to Islam and now goes by the name Abu Rumaysah, had skipped police bail in the UK to travel to Syria with his wife and young children in 2014.
Nihad Barakat, a Yazidi teenager held as a sex slave by ISIS, was quoted as saying by the Independent in May 2016 that she was kidnapped and trafficked by Dhar, who was based in Mosul, the groups former stronghold in Iraq.
Dhar was dubbed as the "New Jihadi John" and became a senior commander of the dreaded outfit, the report had said.
The State Department has designated two ISIS members, Siddhartha Dhar and Abdelatif Gaini, as Specially Designated Global Terrorists under Section 1(b) of Executive Order which also imposes sanctions on foreign persons determined to have committed, or pose a significant risk of committing, acts of terrorism that threaten the security of US nationals or the national security, foreign policy, or economy of the US, a state department spokesperson said in a statement.
These designations seek to deny Dhar and Gaini the resources they need to plan and carry out further terrorist attacks, it said.
Among other consequences, all of Dhars and Gainis property and interests in property subject to US jurisdiction are blocked, and US persons are generally prohibited from engaging in any transactions with them, it said.
Dhar was a leading member of now-defunct terrorist organisation Al-Muhajiroun. In late 2014, Dhar left the United Kingdom to travel to Syria to join ISIS, it said.
He is considered to have replaced ISIS executioner Mohammad Emwazi, also known as "Jihadi John", it said.
Dhar is believed to be the masked leader who appeared in a January 2016 ISIS video of the execution of several prisoners ISIS accused of spying for the UK, the statement said.
Gaini is a Belgian-Moroccan citizen believed to be fighting for ISIS in the Middle East. Gaini is connected to UK-based ISIS sympathizers Mohamad Ali Ahmed and Humza Ali, who were convicted in the UK in 2016 of terrorism offenses, it said.
Todays action notifies the US public and the international community that Dhar and Gaini have committed or pose a significant risk of committing acts of terrorism, it said.
Terrorism designations expose and isolate organizations and individuals, and deny them access to the US financial system. Moreover, designations can assist the law enforcement activities of US agencies and other governments, it said.
Who is Siddhartha Dhar? Why did the US designate him as a terrorist?
The United States has designated an Indian-origin British citizen, Siddhartha Dhar, as a global terrorist after the country identified him as the Islamic State (IS) executioner in Syria who was was seen in videos carrying out beheadings.
According to the US State Department, Dhar "is believed to be the masked leader who appeared in a January 2016 IS video of the execution of several prisoners" who were accused by it of spying for Britain.
HERE ARE 10 THINGS TO KNOW ABOUT SIDDHARTHA DHAR:
- Also known as Abu Rumaysah, Dhar is in his early 30s.
- He was born and raised in a Hindu family in the United Kingdom.
- He converted to Islam in his late teens and took the name Saiful Islam (Abu Rumaysah is a "kunya", or nickname, which means "father of Rumaysah").
- Before leaving Syria to join the IS in 2014, was a member of a British terrorist organisation Al Muhajiroun.
- At Al Muhajiroun, he became a leading member and speaker. He was a well-known figure among radical Islamists in London.
- Siddhartha Dhar is considered to have replaced feared IS executioner known as "Jihadi John".
- Siddhartha or Abu Rumaysah disappeared in September 2014, after getting bail bail. He was still under investigation for allegedly encouraging terrorism.
- Police had banned him from travelling and he was to submit his passport; however, instead he boarded a coach for Paris from London's Victoria Station, along with his wife and children.
- Later, he posted an image online of himself holding a rifle and announced his arrival in Syria. "What a shoddy security system Britain must have to allow me to breeze through Europe to [IS]," he tweeted.
- The US' state department has said Dhar posed a terrorist threat to US citizens and interests and any property he may have in the US are frozen and Americans banned in dealing with them.
(Source: India Today)
No comments:
Post a Comment