Notice of Department of State Sanctions Blocking Property and Suspending Entry of Certain Persons Contributing to the Situation in Syria

SUMMARY:

The Secretary of State has imposed sanctions on three individuals.

DATES:

The Secretary of State's determination and selection of certain sanctions to be imposed upon the two persons identified in the SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section were effective on November 9, 2020.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Taylor Ruggles, Director, Office of Economic Sanctions Policy and Implementation, Bureau of Economic and Business Affairs, Department of State, Washington, DC 20520, tel.: (202) 647-7677, email: RugglesTV@state.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Pursuant to Section 2(a) of E.O. 13894 of October 14, 2019, the Secretary of State, in consultation with the Secretary of the Treasury, the Secretary of Commerce, the Secretary of Homeland Security, and the United States Trade Representative, and with the President of the Export-Import Bank, the Chairman of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, and other agencies and officials as appropriate, is authorized to impose on a person any of the sanctions described in section 2(c) of E.O. 13894 upon determining that the person met any criteria set forth in section 2(a)(i) or section 2(a)(ii) of E.O. 13894.

The Secretary of State has determined, pursuant to Section 2(a)(i)(A) of E.O. 13894, that Saqr Rustom and the National Defense Forces are responsible for or complicit in, have directly or indirectly engaged in, attempted to engage in, or financed, the obstruction, disruption, or prevention of a ceasefire in northern Syria.

Pursuant to Sections 2(b) and 2(c) of E.O. 13894, the Secretary of State has selected the following sanctions to be imposed upon Saqr Rustom and the National Defense Forces:

• Block all property and interests in property that are in the United States, that hereafter come within the United States, or that are or hereafter come within the possession or control of any United States person of Saqr Rustom and the National Defense Forces, and provide that such property and interests in property may not be transferred, paid, exported, withdrawn, or otherwise dealt in (Section 2(c)(iv) of E.O. 13894).