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Article
Starving Terrorists of their financial oxygen - at all costs?
Journal of Money Laundering Control (2010)
  • Sidney Yankson, Boston University
Abstract

This paper will review the designation system under United Nations Security Council (UNSC) resolutions 1267 (1999) and 1373 (2001). The purpose of these two resolutions is to freeze funds or other assets. These resolutions differ in the persons and entities whose funds or other assets are to be frozen, the authorities responsible for making these designations and the effect of these designations. UNSC resolution 1267 (1999) obligates jurisdictions to freeze funds and assets owned or controlled by Al-Qaida, The Taliban, Usama Bin Laden or persons and entities associated with them. The designations of persons and entities for the purpose of this resolution can only be made by the UN Al-Qaida and Taliban Sanctions Committee (ATSC). All UN members must follow these designations. UNSC resolution 1373 (2001) obligates jurisdictions to freeze funds and assets of persons, or entities associated with them, who commit, or attempt to commit, terrorist acts or participate in or facilitate the commission of terrorist acts. Each individual jurisdiction has the authority to designate the persons or entities that should have their assets frozen and each jurisdiction should give effect to other jurisdictions freezing actions. Each jurisdiction receiving a request for an asset freeze has to satisfy itself that according to applicable legal principles, a request for designation is supported by reasonable grounds, or a reasonable basis, for asset freezing. The 1999 Terrorist Financing Convention also seeks to achieve similar objectives to the aforementioned resolutions for the high contracting parties. By September 2001, the 1999 convention had not received the required 22 ratifications (Bantekas, 2003). UNSC resolution 1373 changed all that by making the gist of the 1999 Convention binding on all UN member states irrespective of their ratification or otherwise of the convention.

Keywords
  • United Nations,
  • anti-terrorism,
  • asset freezing,
  • FATF,
  • European Union,
  • evidence,
  • clandestine services
Publication Date
Summer July 30, 2010
Citation Information
Sidney Yankson. "Starving Terrorists of their financial oxygen - at all costs?" Journal of Money Laundering Control 13.3 (2010): 282-306.