British ISIL Fighters To Be Sanctioned By UN

Britain's who have travelled to Syria to join ISIL will be subject to UN sanctions for the first time.

The government appealed to the United Nations, that some British citizens fighting for ISIL be added to the UN Al Qaeda sanctions, which would lead to a global asset freeze and travel ban being imposed against them.

The government put forward the proposal earlier this month to the UN Sanctions Committee and the measures went through at a UN General Council meeting currently being held in New York. The move underlines the government's determination that those who go and fight for ISIL and threaten Britain will face consequences for their actions.

It is the first time since 2006 that the government has sought to subject British nationals to the UN AQ sanctions regime. The individuals are deemed to be associated with "participating in the financing, planning, facilitating, preparing, or perpetrating of acts or activities by, in conjunction with, under the name of, on behalf of, or in support of", "recruiting for" and "otherwise supporting acts or activities of" Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant, listed as Al-Qaida in Iraq.

They include both men and women who are actively seeking to recruit to ISIL and using social media to promote terrorist activity online, including providing guidance on how to make homemade bombs.

The move comes as the Prime Minister attends a counter-ISIL coalition event with President Obama and other world leaders in New York today. Other countries are also stepping up their efforts against foreign fighters.

(MH/LM)