29.9.2017   

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

L 251/23

(1)

On 5 September 2017, the United Nations Security Council (the ‘Security Council’) adopted Resolution 2374 (2017), recalling its Resolutions 2364 (2017) and 2359 (2017) and reaffirming the Security Council's strong commitment to the sovereignty, unity and territorial integrity of Mali.

(2)

United Nations Security Council Resolution (UNSCR) 2374 (2017) requires that travel restrictions be applied to persons to be designated by the Committee established by paragraph 9 of UNSCR 2374 (2017) (‘the Sanctions Committee’) and that funds and assets of persons or entities to be designated by the Sanctions Committee be frozen.

(3)

Action by the Union is needed in order to implement certain measures,

(a)

engaging in hostilities in violation of the Agreement on Peace and Reconciliation in Mali (the ‘Agreement’);

(b)

actions taken that obstruct, or that obstruct by prolonged delay, or that threaten the implementation of the Agreement;

(c)

acting for or on behalf of or at the direction of, or otherwise supporting or financing individuals and entities identified in points (a) and (b), including through the proceeds from organised crime, including the production and trafficking of narcotic drugs and their precursors originating in or transiting through Mali, the trafficking in persons and the smuggling of migrants, the smuggling and trafficking of arms as well as the trafficking in cultural property;

(d)

involvement in planning, directing, sponsoring, or conducting attacks against:

(e)

obstructing the delivery of humanitarian assistance to Mali, or access to, or distribution of, humanitarian assistance in Mali;

(f)

planning, directing, or committing acts in Mali that violate international human rights law or international humanitarian law, as applicable, or that constitute human rights abuses or violations, including those involving the targeting of civilians, including women and children, through the commission of acts of violence (including killing, maiming, torture, or rape or other sexual violence), abduction, enforced disappearance, forced displacement, or attacks on schools, hospitals, religious sites, or locations where civilians are seeking refuge;

(g)

the use or recruitment of children by armed groups or armed forces in violation of applicable international law, in the context of the armed conflict in Mali;

(h)

knowingly facilitating the travel of a listed person in violation of the travel restrictions.

(a)

entry or transit is justified on the grounds of humanitarian need, including religious obligation;

(b)

an exemption would further the objectives of peace and national reconciliation in Mali and stability in the region.

(a)

engaging in hostilities in violation of the Agreement;

(b)

actions taken that obstruct, or that obstruct by prolonged delay, or that threaten the implementation of the Agreement;

(c)

acting for or on behalf of or at the direction of, or otherwise supporting or financing individuals and entities identified in points (a) and (b), including through the proceeds from organised crime, including the production and trafficking of narcotic drugs and their precursors originating in or transiting through Mali, the trafficking in persons and the smuggling of migrants, the smuggling and trafficking of arms as well as the trafficking in cultural property;

(d)

involvement in planning, directing, sponsoring, or conducting attacks against:

(e)

obstructing the delivery of humanitarian assistance to Mali, or access to, or distribution of, humanitarian assistance in Mali;

(f)

planning, directing, or committing acts in Mali that violate international human rights law or international humanitarian law, as applicable, or that constitute human rights abuses or violations, including those involving the targeting of civilians, including women and children, through the commission of acts of violence (including killing, maiming, torture, or rape or other sexual violence), abduction, enforced disappearance, forced displacement, or attacks on schools, hospitals, religious sites, or locations where civilians are seeking refuge;

(g)

the use or recruitment of children by armed groups or armed forces in violation of applicable international law, in the context of the armed conflict in Mali;

(h)

knowingly facilitating the travel of a listed person in violation of the travel restrictions;

(a)

necessary for basic expenses, including payment for foodstuffs, rent or mortgage, medicines and medical treatment, taxes, insurance premiums, and public utility charges;

(b)

intended exclusively for the payment of reasonable professional fees and reimbursement of incurred expenses associated with the provision of legal services; or

(c)

intended exclusively for the payment of fees or service charges for routine holding or maintenance of frozen funds or economic resources;

(a)

necessary for extraordinary expenses, provided that such determination has been notified by the Member State to the Sanctions Committee and has been approved by the Sanctions Committee;

(b)

the subject of a judicial, administrative or arbitral lien or judgment, in which case the funds and economic resources may be used to satisfy that lien or judgment provided that the lien was entered into or judgment delivered prior to the date on which the person or entity was included in the Annex, the lien or judgment is not for the benefit of a person or entity referred to in paragraph 1 and has been notified by the Member State concerned to the Sanctions Committee.

(a)

interest or other earnings on those accounts; or

(b)

payments due under contracts, agreements or obligations that were concluded or arose prior to the date on which those accounts became subject to the restrictive measures provided for in this Decision;