UK updates four ISIL and Al-Qaeda sanctions entries

LONDON, August 17, 2026 — The UK revised identifying and descriptive information for four sanctions entries tied to ISIL and Al-Qaeda networks, while keeping each subject to an asset freeze, arms embargo and travel ban.

The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office updated the UK Sanctions List with the variations on Aug. 17. Three entries cover individuals; the fourth covers Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant-Khorasan, or ISIL-K. The designations derive from the United Nations sanctions regime implemented through UK regulations.

The revisions affect biographical data, aliases, locations and other identifiers used to distinguish sanctioned parties. That makes the update relevant to screening and list-maintenance processes even though the underlying restrictions remain in place.

One revised entry concerns Amin Muhammad Ul Haq Saam Khan, identified as a security coordinator for Usama bin Laden. His updated information includes an arrest in Pakistan in 2024, deportation to Afghanistan in 2025 and an address in Kabul as of June 2026.

Two entries concern Ugandan nationals associated with ISIL activity in Africa. Abubakar Swalleh is described as a facilitator who has provided financial and logistical support, including recruitment, in East and Southern Africa since 2018. Hamidah Nabagala is identified as a mediator in ISIL financing channels in Central Africa who was charged with financing a 2021 bombing in Kampala.

The ISIL-K entry covers an organization linked in the sanctions information to attacks in Afghanistan and Pakistan and includes multiple name variants. Revised names and identifiers can change how potential matches appear in sanctions-screening systems.