"The Department of State has announced the designation of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant’s (ISIL’s) branch in Libya (ISIL-Libya) as a Foreign Terrorist Organization under section 219 of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA)," the release said.
The State Department added that Washington also designated the IS branches in Yemen and Saudi Arabia.
.@StateDept announces #terrorist #designations of #ISIL-Yemen, #ISIL-Saudi Arabia, and #ISIL-Libya → https://t.co/zZnx0pR41V
— State Dept CT Bureau (@StateDeptCT) 19 May 2016
“ISIL-Yemen, ISIL-Saudi Arabia, and ISIL-Libya all emerged as official ISIL branches in November 2014 when US Department of State-designated Specially Designated Global Terrorist and ISIL leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi announced that he had accepted the oaths of allegiance from fighters in Yemen, Saudi Arabia, and Libya, and was thereby creating ISIL “branches” in those countries,” the release explained.
The release noted that while the presence of the Daesh is limited in Libya, Yemen, Saudi Arabia, the three IS branches have carried out multiple terrorist deadly attacks.
As of today, the United States has sanction eight IS branches in total, including Boko Haram, and ISIL-North Caucasus, and ISIL-Khorasan, according to the release.
The Islamic State is a terrorist group that is outlawed in the United States, Russia and numerous other countries. The infamous group has seized large areas in Syria and Iraq and declared a caliphate on territories under its control.