Washington on Thursday imposed sanctions on three individuals and a Malta-based company, accusing them of acting as a network of smugglers and of contributing to instability in Libya.
The US Treasury Department said in a statement it blacklisted Faysal al-Wadi, accusing the Libyan national of having smuggled drugs and Libyan fuel into Malta. Also blacklisted were two associates, Malta-based company Alwefaq Ltd, and the vessel Maraya, which the Treasury said Wadi had used in his alleged smuggling operations.
The Treasury also said that “competition for control of smuggling routes, oil facilities, and transport nodes is a key driver of conflict in Libya and deprives the Libyan people of economic resources.” Thursday’s action freezes any US assets of those blacklisted and generally bars Americans from dealing with them.
“Faysal al-Wadi and his associates have smuggled fuel from Libya and used Libya as a transit zone to smuggle illicit drugs,” Reuters reported Deputy Treasury Secretary Justin Muzinich as saying.