Former Afghan Allies Sanctioned for Corruption

The U.S. Treasury on December 11 slapped sanctions on a former Afghan official, his son, and related entities, accusing them of misappropriating millions of dollars of funds provided by U.S. government contracts.

The sanctions statement cited former Afghan parliament speaker Mir Rahman Rahmani and his son Ajmal Rahmani. "Through their Afghan companies, the Rahmanis perpetrated a complex procurement corruption scheme resulting in the misappropriation of millions of dollars from U.S. Government-funded contracts that supported Afghan security forces," it said, adding that other family members were also designated.

The Sanction action included 21 German companies, Eight in Cyprus, Six in the U.A.E. and others in Austria, The Netherlands and Bulgaria.

These individuals and entities are designated pursuant to Executive Order (E.O.) 13818, which builds upon and implements the Global Magnitsky Human Rights Accountability Act and targets perpetrators of serious human rights abuse and corruption.

The investigation was conducted in close coordination with the Office of the Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction (SIGAR), a U.S. agency created to provide independent and objective oversight of Afghanistan reconstruction projects and activities.