May 9 (UPI) — The Biden administration on Monday sanctioned a network of five ISIS financial facilitators accused of smuggling children from Syrian refugee camps to fight in their terrorism cause.
The Treasury said the five people play a “key role” in facilitating the travel of ISIS terrorists to Syria and other locations where the organization operates. The network also transfers funds collected in Indonesia and Turkey into Syria displaced-persons camps to support ISIS efforts there, including for the recruitment of child fighters, it said.
“Today, Treasury has taken action to expose and disrupt an international facilitation network that has supported ISIS recruitment, including the recruitment of vulnerable children in Syria,” Under Secretary of the Treasury for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence Brian Nelson said in a statement.
The federal department identified Dwi Dahlia Susanti for sanctions, accusing her of being an ISIS financial facilitator since at least 2017.
According to the treasury, she has facilitated money transfers from Indonesia to displaced-persons camps in Syria with some of the funds used to smuggle teenage children out to the desert where they are picked up as recruits by ISIS foreign fighters.
Muhammad Dandi Adhiguna and Dini Ramadhani were sanctioned on accusations of providing Susanti assistance on multiple occasions and aided her with financial and personal matters, the Treasury said.
Rudi Heryadi and Ari Kardian were also hit with sanctions, which freeze all property and interest in property in their name while blocking U.S. citizens from doing business with them.
The sanctions were imposed ahead of a meeting of the Counter ISIS Finance Group of the Global Coalition to Defeat ISIS that is to be hosted by Morocco on Wednesday.
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