A proposed UN resolution to crack down on the financing of terrorist groups calls for sanctions on individuals and companies trading oil produced by the Islamic State and other al-Qaida-linked groups.
The Russian-sponsored resolution, obtained yesterday by The Associated Press, would also require all 193 UN member states to take "appropriate steps" to prevent the trade in antiquities and other items of historical, cultural, rare scientific and religious importance illegally removed from Syria.
A similar ban already exists for antiquities from Iraq.
The draft resolution would also reaffirm that it is illegal to pay ransom to individuals and groups that are already subject to UN sanctions, and that all countries are required to freeze such funds.
If adopted, the proposed measure would be another in a series of Security Council resolutions targeting terror that go back to the days immediately after the September 11, 2001 attacks.
The earliest resolution bans all countries from supporting or financing terrorism. Subsequent measures have ordered sanctions against terrorists and terrorist groups, demanded an end to ransom payments to such groups, and required nations to bar their citizens from traveling abroad to join terrorist organisations.
The draft resolution was initially debated by the five veto-wielding council members the US, Russia, China, Britain and France. It was circulated to the 10 elected members Wednesday night, and the full council discussed it for the first time at a closed council meeting later yesterday.
Russia's UN Ambassador Vitaly Churkin said the reaction was "very positive" and he hopes for a vote on Tuesday.
In November, a UN panel of experts monitoring al-Qaida sanctions said the Islamic State group, which controls about a third of Syria and Iraq, received USD 35 million to USD 45 million in ransom payments over the past year and that kidnapping for ransom continues to grow.
Many governments do pay ransom, but the US, Britain, Japan and others have refused, leading to the deaths of their hostages.
