MOGADISHU, SOMALIA — The Terrorist Financing Targeting Center (TFTC) has released a list of 15 individuals linked to the Somali militant group Al-Shabaab. The list includes leaders, operatives, and financial facilitators accused of playing key roles in supporting the group’s operations across Somalia.
According to the TFTC, these individuals are involved in a range of activities, including fundraising, trafficking in kidnapped persons, facilitating the manufacture of explosives, and suppressing civilian populations. The list includes figures such as Hasaan Abshir Xuuroow, Aadan Yusuf Saciid Ibrahim, and Mumin Dheere, who are accused of directly financing and enabling Al-Shabaab’s violent campaigns.
Strengthening Global Financial Sanctions
This designation marks the eighth round of coordinated sanctions by TFTC member states. The Center, which includes the United States and six Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries — Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates — aims to disrupt terrorist financial networks by strengthening international cooperation.
Focus on Disrupting Financial Networks
Anna Morris, Acting Assistant Secretary for Terrorist Financing at the U.S. Department of the Treasury, stressed the importance of these coordinated actions: “TFTC is working to prevent Al-Shabaab from accessing regional and international financial networks that enable them to fund attacks and sustain violent operations,” she said.
The TFTC’s efforts follow a previous designation in May 2023, when the U.S. government named 15 of the same individuals as part of a wider list of 26 operatives affiliated with Al-Shabaab. These individuals were implicated in various support roles including fundraising, business facilitation, explosives manufacturing, and financial operations in the group’s name.
This latest move underscores ongoing international efforts to cut off financial lifelines that sustain Al-Shabaab’s insurgency and to hold accountable those enabling terrorism through illicit financial means.
