EU Orders Blocking Assets of 11 Terrorist Organizations

On May 3, 2002 the European union ordered the blockage of the assets of 11 international terrorist organizations and seven individuals in a continuing efforts to probatively identify and block assets and prevents financing of transnational terrorism. The EU list names the PKK, the Kurdish separatist group in Turkey, Peru?s Shining Path, the Japanese Aum Shinrikyo, the Colombian paramilitary group united Self Defense Fores (AUC), the Kashmiri militant group Lashkar-e-Taiba, the Basque organization Askatasuna, two groups that have worked for a new Sikh states in India. In 1996 the Belgian Government started an investigation but closed without prosecuting the PKK or Med-TV. Now there is again a preliminary investigation of several members of Med-TV for financial crimes and arms trafficking. In addition, for some days Brussels judge Jeroen Burm has investigated a money laundering charge connected to arms trafficking against Med-TV. the matter is also the object of a letter rogatory in France. Clearly the international community continues to discuss the persons that should be on terrorist lists in international organizations, such as the United Nations Counterterrorism Committee/