UN set to adopt resolution to disrupt Islamic State funds
None
UNITED NATIONS - Finance ministers from the 15 nations on the UN Security Council will meet Thursday to adopt a resolution aimed at disrupting the outside revenue that the Islamic State extremist group gets from selling oil and antiquities, from ransom payments and other criminal activities.
The Islamic State group is already subject to UN sanctions under resolutions dealing with al-Qaeda. But the proposed resolution, sponsored by the United States and Russia, elevates IS to the same level as al-Qaeda, reflecting its split from al-Qaeda and the growing threat it poses especially in the Mideast and North Africa.
US Treasury Secretary Jacob Lew, who will chair Thursday's meeting, said when the meeting was announced earlier this month that disrupting the Islamic State group's financing and cutting it off from the international financial system "are critical to effectively combating this violent terrorist group."
