The United States has imposed sanctions on eight Nigerians, freezing their assets and properties over alleged ties to Boko Haram, the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), and involvement in cybercrime.
The sanctions were disclosed in a 3,000-page document dated February 10, released by the US Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) and obtained by our correspondent on Monday.
The list also named other individuals sanctioned for cybercrime and security-related offenses.
The action follows recommendations from the US Congress, which called for visa restrictions and asset freezes on persons and groups accused of persecuting Christians and violating religious freedom in Nigeria.
Among those flagged are Salih Yusuf Adamu, also known as Salihu Yusuf, who was reportedly involved in a Boko Haram fundraising cell in the United Arab Emirates. Yusuf and five others were convicted in 2022 for attempting to transfer $782,000 from Dubai to support insurgent activities in Nigeria.
Other sanctioned individuals include Babestan Oluwole Ademulero, Abu Abdullah ibn Umar Al-Barnawi, Abu Musab Al-Barnawi, Khaled Al-Barnawi, Ibrahim Ali Alhassan, Abu Bakr ibn Muhammad ibn Ali Al-Mainuki, and Nnamdi Orson Benson.
They were listed under terrorism and cybercrime-related provisions, with OFAC blocking their property and interests within US jurisdiction.
“The publication of the OFAC list is intended as an official notice to inform the public and prevent financial dealings with sanctioned persons and entities,” the agency said.
Under the sanctions, US persons are prohibited from engaging in transactions with the designated individuals, whose assets in the United States are now frozen under Executive Order 13224.
Boko Haram was formally designated a foreign terrorist organisation by the US in 2013 and is linked to thousands of deaths across northern Nigeria and the Lake Chad Basin.
The US Secretary of State has also repeatedly designated countries that support international terrorism under several laws, including the National Defense Authorization Act and the Foreign Assistance Act.
In October 2025, former US President Donald Trump placed Nigeria on the “Countries of Particular Concern” watchlist over alleged persecution of Christians, a designation previously lifted by President Joe Biden in 2021.
