The UN extends sanctions against former Tajik commander Gulmurod Halimov who joined the Islamic State

The UN Security Council has extended sanctions against Colonel Gulmurod Halimov, a former commander of the Tajik Interior Ministry’s Special Forces, known as OMON, who joined the Islamic State (IS) extremist group in Syria in May 2015 and who has been reported killed several times in recent years.

Halimov’s name remained in the UN Security Council’s updated sanctions list that was made public on October 21.

After Halimov announced that he had joined Islamic State via the Internet in May 2015, Tajikistan issued an international warrant for his arrest and the United States has offered $3 million for information on his whereabouts.

There have been several unconfirmed reports from both northern Iraq and Syria since 2015 that Halimov was killed while fighting for IS militants.

Tajik authorities have repeatedly rejected those reports, saying they think he is still alive.

Source: RFERL