The United
States on Tuesday slapped a special terrorist designation on Indonesia's most
high-profile backer of Islamic State, blocking any US assets he might have, banning
dealings with him by Americans and opening the way for US law-enforcement
action against him
The
State Department said Santoso, a militant in Poso in central Sulawesi who has
been on the run for more than three years, had been added to its list of
Specially Designated Global Terrorists (SDGT). Santoso, like many in Indonesia,
goes by one name.
"As a
result of this designation, all property subject to US jurisdiction in which
Santoso has any interest is blocked and US persons are generally prohibited
from engaging in any transactions with Santoso," the department said in a
statement.
It said
Santoso was the leader of the Mujahidin Indonesia Timur (MIT), a group already
on the State Department's SDGT list, that had been responsible for numerous
killings and kidnappings in Indonesia over the past few years.
"Today's
action notifies the US public and the international community that Santoso is
actively engaged in terrorism," the department said.
It said the
SDGT designation enabled "coordinated action across the US Government and
with our international partners to disrupt the activities of terrorists,
including by denying them access to the U.S. financial system and enabling US
law enforcement actions."
Reuters
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