The Twenty-Seven have decided this Monday to extend for one more year, until October 31, 2027, the regime of sanctions that weighs on the terrorist organizations Islamic State and Al Qaeda, as well as on the individuals and entities that maintain links with them.
Currently, these restrictive measures apply to 15 individuals and eight organizations, all of whom are subject to the freezing of their assets and properties. In addition, the individuals included on the list are banned from entering and transiting through the territory of the European Union.
Similarly, the sanctions prevent citizens and companies of the European Union from providing funds, financial assets, or economic resources to the sanctioned individuals and groups, both directly and indirectly, as detailed by the Council (the governments) in an official statement.
The current sanctioning framework was established in 2016, when the community bloc decided to adopt restrictive measures against Islamic State during the group's offensive in large areas of Syria and Iraq, with the aim of strengthening the international response.
These sanctions are in addition to those approved by the United Nations Security Council against Islamic State and Al Qaeda and complement them, thereby strengthening the international mechanism against both terrorist organizations.
Regarding the measures specifically directed against Al Qaeda, the member states have recalled in their writing that the first ones were adopted in 2002, after the attack on the Twin Towers and the Pentagon in the United States.