US Treasury, UAE blacklist alleged Yemeni Qaeda backers

Washington : The United States yesterday slapped financial sanctions on a Yemeni company and its two owners accused of funneling money to the militant Islamist group Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula.

The AQAP group allegedly used the company, known as Al-Omgy and Brothers Money Exchange, to make and receive payments throughout Yemen, the US Treasury said.

The US imposed sanctions on the company’s two owners, Said Salih Abd-Rabbuh al-Omgy and Muhammed Salih Abd-Rabbuh al-Omgy, an alleged AQAP member.

Said al-Omgy has raised funds to support recruitment and training of Yemenis to join Iraqi insurgents, while Muhammad al-Omgy had reportedly provided weapons to AQAP, the Treasury said.