The United States has imposed sanctions on an armed group linked to the Democratic Republic of the Congo’s military, a Congolese mining cooperative, and two Hong Kong-based companies over alleged involvement in violence and the illicit mineral trade.
The move aims to curb the exploitation of conflict minerals from eastern Congo, Business Insider Africa reported.
The U.S. Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) sanctioned PARECO-FF, a successor to a militia accused of destabilising activities, forced labour, and civilian executions in mining zones.
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Also targeted is Cooperative des Artisanaux Miniers du Congo (CDMC), which the Treasury says sold minerals sourced from PARECO-FF-controlled areas.
Hong Kong firms East Rise Corporation Limited and Star Dragon Corporation Limited allegedly purchased these smuggled minerals.
The sanctions, which prohibit U.S. persons and companies from doing business with the listed entities, focus on activities in Rubaya—a key source of tantalum ore used in electronics manufacturing.
Washington hopes that stability in the mineral-rich region could attract billions in Western investment into resources such as tantalum, gold, cobalt, copper, and lithium
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