WASHINGTON—A Syrian man accused of trafficking Syrian and Lebanese nationals to the U.S. border was sanctioned on Wednesday by the U.S. Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control, which said it was intent on disrupting his “prolific human smuggling operations” around the globe.
Acting under executive order 13581 “Blocking Property of Transnational Criminal Organizations” issued under President Obama in 2011, the Treasury placed Nasif Barakat and his gang, based in Homs, Syria, on a list of people and entities whose assets under U.S. control can be frozen. The action generally prohibits U.S. citizens from dealing with Barakat or his group.
