US: Syrian rebel group a terror organization

[NewsCaster]

Islamic radicals captured a key Syrian army base outside Aleppo as the city is left battered and divided amid a growing humanitarian crisis. NBC's Richard Engel reports. By ReutersThe United States on Tuesday designated a radical Islamist Syrian rebel group, Jabhat al-Nusra, which is suspected of ties to al-Qaida, as a foreign terrorist organization.

By classifying al-Nusra as a terrorist organization, the U.S. State Department order essentially classifies the group, which has advocated for an Islamic state in Syria, as an affiliate of al-Qaida in Iraq.  U.S. Treasury officials also imposed sanctions on two senior leaders of al-Nusrah.


With al-Nusra blacklisted, authorities now can freeze any assets the group or its members have in U.S. jurisdictions. The designation also prohibits Americans from giving it any material support.

NBCNews