The European Union announced on Thursday July 21 that it had sanctioned ten Syrian nationals and two private security companies for their involvement in the recruitment of Syrian and Palestinian mercenaries sent to fight in Ukraine on behalf of Russia.
The sanctions consist of a freezing of their assets and a ban on traveling to EU countries, specifies the explanatory memorandum published in the Official Journal with the identities of the persons and entities sanctioned.
EU blacklist
The owner of the Syrian airline "
Cham Wings
", Issam Shammout, a businessman linked to the regime of Bashar al-Assad, is among the new people on this EU blacklist.
A Syrian army officer, Colonel Saleh al-Adbullah, is for his part sanctioned for having recruited soldiers from his unit, the 16th brigade of the Syrian army, to fight in Ukraine.
Read alsoRussia says it has stopped the influx of foreign “mercenaries” into Ukraine
The EU has also blacklisted the commander-in-chief of the Palestine Liberation Army, Muhammad al-Salti, a Syrian national, "
for the recruitment of Palestinian mercenaries
" sent to Libya and Ukraine, as well as two military officials and the leader of a Syrian political faction.
Also sanctioned are two Syrian protection companies, the “
Sanad Protection and Security Services
” and the al-Sayyad Company for Guarding and Protection Services, both linked to the private Russian company Wagner, as well as their four leaders.