Noonan: Entities with ties to Al-Qaeda have over 1.1 million euros frozen in banks in Ireland

DUBLIN, Ireland - Ireland's Finance Minister Michael Noonan has said entities with ties to terrorist network al-Qaeda have over $1.2 million (1.1 million euros) frozen in several bank accounts in Ireland.

He added that there are over $1.6 billion (1.5 billion euros) in funds owned by entities linked to Libya frozen in several Irish-based bank accounts.

The minister further confirmed that there is another 1 million euros in funds frozen in accounts owned by parties with links to Iran, with another $620,951 (583,000 euros) frozen in bank accounts owned by entities linked to Syria.

In addition, there are some accounts with small amounts that are frozen belonging to entities that are connected to North Korea and Somalia.

He said, “EU Regulations commonly include an obligation for funds and other assets to be frozen without delay and not made available to listed sanctioned individuals or entities.”

The country's Central Bank is in charge of enforcing these financial sanctions, and failure to comply with the EU’s regulations is met with “appropriate penalties," the finance minister said.