The United States government has imposed sanctions on eight Nigerians over alleged links to extremist groups and cyber-related offences, blocking any assets or financial interests they may hold within US jurisdiction.
The sanctions were announced on February 10 by the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), a unit of the United States Department of the Treasury, through an update to its Specially Designated Nationals and Blocked Persons List.
According to OFAC, the designation freezes the individuals’ assets and prohibits US citizens and companies from engaging in financial transactions with them, serving as a formal warning to the global financial system.
The move follows increasing pressure in Washington, where lawmakers have called for visa restrictions and asset freezes against certain Nigerians accused of religious-freedom violations, including former Kano State governor Rabiu Kwankwaso and the Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association of Nigeria.
Among those sanctioned is Salih Yusuf Adamu, also known as Salihu Yusuf, whom authorities say was part of a network convicted in the United Arab Emirates in 2022 for attempting to transfer $782,000 from Dubai to insurgents in Nigeria.
Others named include Babestan Oluwole Ademulero; Abu Abdullah ibn Umar Al-Barnawi; Abu Musab Al-Barnawi, identified as a commander of Boko Haram; Khaled Al-Barnawi; Ibrahim Ali Alhassan; Abu Bakr ibn Muhammad ibn Ali Al-Mainuki, linked to Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant; and Nnamdi Orson Benson, designated under cybercrime sanctions.
OFAC said the action is part of broader counter-terrorism financing efforts aimed at preventing sanctioned individuals from accessing the international financial system. All property and interests belonging to the affected persons that fall under US jurisdiction are now blocked.
The United States designated Boko Haram a foreign terrorist organisation in 2013, citing its deadly attacks across Nigeria and the Lake Chad Basin since 2009.
