Decree No. (14) of 2022 Concerning the Implementation of Security Council Resolutions

mjr.lab.pna.ps Official Gazette Office | Reference No: 193-8-2022 Issue No. 193 | 2022/08/14

Decree No. (14) of 2022 Concerning the Implementation of Security Council Resolutions

President of the State of Palestine President of the Executive Committee of the Palestine Liberation Organization

Pursuant to the Basic Statute of the Palestine Liberation Organization, and the Amended Basic Law of 2003 and its amendments, and after reviewing Law-Decree No. (39) of 2022 concerning the combating of money laundering and terrorist financing, and Law-Decree No. (41) of 2020 concerning Administrative Courts and its amendments, and the resolutions of the International Security Council concerning terrorist financing related to the regulation of ISIS, Al-Qaeda, and affiliated entities, and the regulation of the Taliban and its affiliates, and the resolutions of the International Security Council concerning the prevention, suppression, and disruption of the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction and their financing, issued under Chapter VII of the Charter of the United Nations, and based on the powers vested in us, and in the public interest, and to achieve we hereby decree as follows:

Chapter One Definitions and General Provisions

Article (1) Definitions

1. For the purposes of applying the provisions of this Decree, the words and expressions contained herein shall have the meanings specified below, unless the context indicates otherwise:

President: The President of the State of Palestine, President of the Executive Committee of the Palestine Liberation Organization.

Law: The effective Law-Decree concerning the combating of money laundering and terrorist financing.

Committee: The Committee for the Implementation of International Security Council Resolutions established pursuant to the Law.

Funds or Other Assets: Assets of every kind, economic resources including oil and other natural resources, and property of all types, whether tangible or intangible, movable or immaterial, physical or non-physical, regardless of the method of acquisition, virtual assets, and documents or legal instruments of any form, including electronic or digital, indicating ownership rights to such funds or assets or a share or benefit therein, circulating currencies, foreign currencies, bank credits, traveler's checks, bank checks, payment orders, financial transfers, cash transfers, shares, securities, bonds, bills of exchange, financial transfers, letters of credit, and any interest, income, share in profits, or any other income or value due from or derived from such funds, and any other assets that may be used to obtain funds, other assets, goods, or services.

Person: A natural person or a legal entity.

Entity: Any aggregation, group, organization, partnership, or undertaking, and any other person or group of persons that does not possess legal personality.

Basic Expenses: Expenses that the Committee deems necessary for the sustenance of the listed person or entity or a member of their family, including amounts paid for food, medicines, medical treatment, rent or mortgage, taxes, insurance premiums, public utility service fees or reasonable professional fees, and repayment of expenses exclusively related to securing legal services, or fees or charges related to the ordinary maintenance of frozen funds or other assets due to the trustee, custodian, or manager of such funds or other assets in accordance with the effective legislation in the State of Palestine.

Exceptional Expenses: Expenses that the Committee does not consider among the basic expenses.

Diplomatic Channels: Methods of communication with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates, such as communication through Palestinian embassies abroad or the Permanent Mission of the State of Palestine to the United Nations, or foreign embassies within the State of Palestine.

Financial Services or Other Related Services: Any service of a financial nature, including, but not limited to:

1. Insurance services and insurance-related services: a. Direct life insurance and other types of insurance (excluding life insurance) (including co-insurance or mutual insurance). b. Reinsurance, retrocession, and assignment of reinsurance. c. Insurance brokerage, such as brokering and agency. d. Insurance support services, such as advisory, actuarial, risk assessment, and claims settlement services. e. Advisory, brokerage, and other financial support services for all activities specified in items (a, b, c, d) of this paragraph, including classification, credit analysis, and research, investment and portfolio advisory, and advisory on acquisitions, restructuring, and corporate strategies.
2. Banking services and other financial services: a. Acceptance of deposits and other payable funds from the public, including specialized banking services. b. Lending of all types, including consumer loans, mortgage loans, and trade financing. c. Financial leasing. d. All payment and money transfer services, including debit cards, traveler's checks, bank transfers, and money or value transfer services. e. Financial guarantees and financial commitments. f. Trading in the following instruments, whether for the account of the specific person, their clients, or in the official exchange market or outside it, including:
   1. Money market instruments, including checks, banknotes, certificates of deposit, short-term debt instruments, certificates of deposit, and other derivatives.
   2. Foreign exchange.
   3. Transferable securities.
   4. Other tradable instruments and financial assets, including gold bullion. g. Participation in the issuance of all types of securities, including acting as underwriting and placement agent, whether public or private, and securing related services. h. Safekeeping and management of cash or liquidable securities on behalf of others. i. Financial brokerage. j. Asset management, such as cash or portfolio management, all types of collective investment management, pension fund management, and custody, safekeeping, and credit services organized and operated on behalf of others. k. Settlement and clearing services for financial assets, including securities and other tradable instruments. l. Provision, transmission, and processing of financial information and related software by other financial service providers. m. Advisory, brokerage, and other financial support services for all activities mentioned in items (a) to (l) of this paragraph, including classification, credit analysis, and research, investment and portfolio advisory, and advisory on acquisitions, restructuring, and corporate strategies. n. Any other services specified by the Committee.

Listing: Designating a person or entity as subject to targeted financial sanctions pursuant to Articles (13) and (14) of this Decree, or parallel provisions in other laws and jurisdictions.

Listing Information: The name of the listed person or entity and all identification information associated with them.

National Listing: The list prepared in accordance with the provisions of this Decree.

Proliferation Financing: Financing the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction.

Reasonable Grounds to Suspect: The grounds that enable the Committee to make clear and timely decisions regarding whether the proposed names for listing on the sanctions committees established pursuant to Resolutions (1988), or (1267) and (1989), or the committee established pursuant to Resolution (1988), or the names proposed for listing or required to be listed by local or other foreign authorities on the National Listing, or the names listed on the National Listing that the Committee requests other states to list on their lists, meet the listing criteria for those lists, such that the information available to the Committee is credible, sufficiently detailed, from multiple sources, and coherent with each other, so that the data are consistent and do not contradict any other detailed and credible information available to the Committee.

Relevant Security Council Resolutions: Resolutions issued by the International Security Council under Chapter VII of the Charter of the United Nations concerning the combating and prevention of terrorism or terrorist financing or proliferation financing, including, but not limited to, Resolutions (1267) of 1999, (1373) of 2001, (2253) of 2015, (1718) of 2006, (1874) of 2009, (2087) of 2013, (2094) of 2013, (2231) of 2015, (2270) of 2016, (2321) of 2016, (2356) of 2017, and all related, current, future, and subsequent resolutions.

Sanctions Committees: The sanctions committees established pursuant to Security Council Resolutions No. (1267) of 1999 and (1989) of 2011 and (2253) of 2015 concerning Al-Qaeda and ISIS and their affiliates, the sanctions committee established pursuant to Security Council Resolution No. (1718) of 2006 concerning the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, or the sanctions committee established pursuant to Security Council Resolution (1988) of 2011 concerning the Taliban organization and its affiliates.

Security Council: The United Nations Security Council.

United Nations List: A list of all persons and entities subject to targeted financial sanctions pursuant to relevant Security Council resolutions and maintained by any of the sanctions committees, and any other person or entity subject to targeted financial sanctions pursuant to Security Council resolutions related to the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction or financing of proliferation, in addition to all information specific to their identification.

Freezing: Prohibiting the transfer, conversion, disposition, or movement of funds, other assets, equipment, or other means, or their use or control, when owned or controlled by listed persons or entities pursuant to relevant Security Council resolutions applicable to measures initiated by the Security Council or in accordance with procedures initiated by the Committee, and during the duration of those measures and resolutions.

Delisting: Removing or deleting the name of a person or entity from the United Nations List or the National Listing.

Written Notice or Written Request: A notice or request submitted in writing, whether in paper copy via mail or courier or fax, or in electronic copy via email, internet, or electronic portal.

2. The words and expressions in this Decree not specified in paragraph (1) of this Article shall have the meanings assigned to them in the Law.

Chapter Two Committee for the Implementation of Security Council Resolutions

Article (2) Committee for the Implementation of Security Council Resolutions

1. A committee named "Committee for the Implementation of Security Council Resolutions" shall be formed, comprising the following members: a. The Attorney General as Chairman. b. The Undersecretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates as a member. c. The Undersecretary of the Ministry of Justice as a member. d. The Undersecretary of the Ministry of Interior as a member. e. The Undersecretary of the Ministry of Finance as a member. f. The Company Registrar as a member. g. The Director of the Financial Intelligence Unit as a member. h. The Director of Supervision at the Palestinian Monetary Authority as a member. i. The Director General of the Capital Market Authority as a member. j. The President of the Land Authority as a member. k. A representative of the General Intelligence Service as a member. l. A representative of the Preventive Security Agency as a member. m. The Director of the National Central Bureau "Interpol Palestine" as a member.

2. The member representing items (k) and (l) of paragraph (1) of this Article must be of a senior rank, appointed by the head of the respective agency.

3. Any other authority may be represented in the Committee's membership if necessary, by a decision of the President upon the proposal of the Committee Chairman.

Article (3) Powers of the Committee

The Committee shall have the following powers in exercising its duties under this Decree:

1. Implementing relevant Security Council resolutions pertaining to the Committee's work.
2. Requesting supervisory authorities, competent authorities, other local authorities, and financial institutions and non-financial businesses and professions specified pursuant to the Law, and foreign authorities through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates, to provide the necessary information to implement the provisions of this Decree. Supervisory authorities, competent authorities, other local authorities, financial institutions, and non-financial businesses and professions specified shall provide such information within the timeframe determined by the Committee.
3. Issuing necessary instructions, rules, and guidelines to implement the provisions of this Decree.
4. Submitting annual reports on its activities to the President of the State.

Article (4) Committee Secretariat

1. The Committee shall have a secretariat responsible for the following tasks: a. Monitoring changes to the United Nations lists on relevant United Nations websites, to be published and disseminated by the Committee in accordance with this Decree. b. Maintaining the National Listing and monitoring changes to it. c. Maintaining and updating all elements of the Committee's website. d. Preparing the United Nations List and the National Listing and amendments to each, to be published in the Official Gazette in accordance with this Decree. e. Receiving correspondence, including listing requests or information requests from local authorities, foreign authorities, and the United Nations through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates. f. Sending correspondence, including information requests to local authorities, foreign authorities, and the United Nations through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates. g. Collecting information on persons or entities whose listing has been proposed or whose delisting has been requested, analyzing this information, and submitting it to the Committee for consideration in accordance with this Decree. h. Receiving requests submitted pursuant to Articles (16, 17, 18, 19) of this Decree, analyzing them, and submitting them to the Committee for consideration. i. Keeping the Committee's minutes and records.

2. The Secretariat shall be attached to the Public Prosecution's Human Resources and provided with necessary resources to perform its duties.

3. The Secretariat shall coordinate with all authorities represented in the Committee to ensure the implementation of obligations and duties stipulated in this Decree.

Article (5) Committee Meetings

1. The Committee shall meet periodically every three months, and may hold extraordinary meetings upon invitation by the Committee Chairman or upon request by at least six members.
2. A Committee meeting shall be legally constituted with a majority of its members (50% + 1), including the Committee Chairman.
3. Committee decisions shall be issued by a majority of the votes of attending members. If votes are tied, the decision favored by the chairperson shall prevail.
4. Committee meetings and decisions shall be documented in writing in official minutes signed by the Committee Chairman and attending members.
5. The Committee shall issue an internal regulation determining the mechanisms for convening meetings, invitations, minutes, and all related matters.

Chapter Three Security Council Resolution (1267) and its Subsequent Resolutions and Resolutions Concerning Proliferation Financing

Article (6) Committee's Responsibility Regarding Lists Approved by UN Sanctions Committees

1. The Committee shall, based on the United Nations List or amendments thereto, including any additions, deletions, or modifications to listing information, perform the following tasks: a. Publish the United Nations List on the Committee's website and disseminate it to supervisory authorities, competent authorities, financial institutions, and non-financial businesses and professions specified within 16 hours of this Decree entering into force. b. Publish amendments to the United Nations List, including any additions, deletions, or changes to listing information, on the Committee's website and disseminate them to supervisory authorities, competent authorities, financial institutions, and non-financial businesses and professions specified within 16 hours of these amendments being published on the relevant United Nations website.

2. For the purposes of applying paragraph (1) of this Article, the following shall be observed: a. The dissemination specified in items (a) and (b) of paragraph (1) of this Article shall include guidelines or a link to guidelines on the obligations of financial institutions and non-financial businesses and professions specified, and any other person or entity, on how to act, take necessary measures to implement or raise freezing and prohibition measures in accordance with this Decree. b. The publication and dissemination specified in item (b) of paragraph (1) of this Article shall include the name of the person or entity listed or delisted from the United Nations List, the name of each person or entity added to the United Nations List and amended, with full listing information and any explanatory summary related to that listing. c. For persons or entities newly listed on the United Nations List, the publication and dissemination specified in item (b) of paragraph (1) of this Article shall include guidelines or a link to guidelines on submitting a request to delist their name to the United Nations Ombudsman's Office or the United Nations Delisting Focal Point, as appropriate, in accordance with paragraph (1) of Article (8) of this Decree. d. Publish the United Nations List and amendments thereto in the Official Gazette.

Article (7) Authority to Propose Listing to UN Sanctions Committees

1. The Committee may, on its own initiative or upon request from any authority in the State of Palestine, propose the listing of a person or entity on the lists of sanctions committees established pursuant to Resolutions (1267) and (1989) or the committee established pursuant to Resolution (1988), if it determines there are reasonable grounds to suspect or believe that the person or entity meets any of the following listing criteria: a. Participating in financing, planning, facilitating, preparing, or executing any acts or activities by ISIS or Al-Qaeda, or in cooperation with them, on their behalf, or on their behalf, or in support of them or any cell, group, splinter, or affiliate thereof. b. Supplying, selling, or transferring weapons or related materials to ISIS or Al-Qaeda or any cell, group, splinter, or affiliate thereof. c. Recruiting on behalf of ISIS or Al-Qaeda or any cell, group, splinter, or affiliate thereof. d. Supporting the acts or activities of ISIS or Al-Qaeda or any cell, group, splinter, or affiliate thereof in any other manner. e. Any person or entity owned or controlled, directly or indirectly, by any person or entity listed pursuant to the criteria mentioned in items (a, b, c, d) of paragraph (1) of this Article, or any person acting on behalf of or at the direction of such persons or entities. f. Participating in financing, planning, facilitating, preparing, or executing any acts or activities by the Taliban, or in cooperation with them, on their behalf, or in support of them, threatening peace, stability, and security in Afghanistan. g. Supplying, selling, or transferring weapons or related materials to the Taliban threatening peace, stability, and security in Afghanistan. h. Recruiting on behalf of the Taliban threatening peace, stability, and security in Afghanistan. i. Supporting the Taliban in any other manner constituting a threat to peace, stability, and security in Afghanistan. j. Any person or entity owned or controlled, directly or indirectly, by any person or entity listed pursuant to the criteria mentioned in items (f, g, h, i) of paragraph (1) of this Article, or any person acting on behalf of or at the direction of such persons or entities.

2. The Committee shall follow the procedures and forms approved by the relevant sanctions committees for listing.

3. The Committee shall secure as much information as possible about the proposed name to accurately identify the person or entity, including the following elements: a. For natural persons: Full name, any aliases or pseudonyms, date of birth, nationality, gender, family member names if available, work or job information, country or countries of residence, passport number, ID number, current address, and previous addresses. b. For legal persons or entities: Name, trade name, abbreviation, any other names currently or previously known by, headquarters address, branches, subsidiaries, organizational links, ownership and management/control structure, parent company name, nature of work or commercial activity, country or countries of activity, registration or establishment number, or any other number identifying the entity and website, and the entity's status regarding liquidation or dissolution must be specified.

4. The listing request shall include a statement of grounds containing details on the basis for proposing listing on the United Nations List, information on meeting listing criteria, and any supporting information or documents, including any links between the proposed person and any other listed person or entity, except for parts designated by the Committee as confidential and for the Security Council only. The statement of grounds must be suitable for publication in accordance with procedures adopted by the sanctions committee or Security Council.

5. The listing request shall specify whether the State of Palestine wishes to be identified as the state submitting the listing request.

6. The Committee shall exercise its authority under paragraph (1) of this Article regardless of whether a criminal case exists.

7. The proposal shall be made unilaterally without prior notice to the concerned person or entity.

Article (8) Delisting by a UN Sanctions Committee

1. Any listed person or entity holding Palestinian citizenship, residing in the State of Palestine, or having a workplace or residence in the State of Palestine may submit a request to delist their name directly to the United Nations Ombudsman's Office or the United Nations Delisting Focal Point, as appropriate, or through the Committee with its approval. The Committee may, on its own initiative if it deems its work justified, submit a delisting request on behalf of a Palestinian citizen, a person residing in the State of Palestine, a person or entity with a workplace or residence in the State of Palestine, or any other person or entity that no longer meets the Committee's listing criteria.

2. The Committee shall forward requests it approves or issues pursuant to paragraph (1) of this Article to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates for referral to the Security Council, relevant sanctions committee, United Nations Ombudsman's Office, or United Nations Delisting Focal Point, as appropriate, in accordance with procedures in force in the Security Council or relevant sanctions committee.

3. The Committee shall receive requests for information or additional inputs related to delisting requests submitted by a listed person or entity or another state through the United Nations Ombudsman's Office, United Nations Delisting Focal Point, Security Council, or relevant sanctions committee.

4. The Committee shall review requests within the timeframe specified by the United Nations Ombudsman's Office, United Nations Delisting Focal Point, Security Council, or relevant sanctions committee, and provide a response, mentioning as appropriate whether, in its opinion, the name of that listed person or entity may be deleted. To this end, it may obtain additional information from any authority, financial institution, or non-financial business or profession specified pursuant to the Law, within the specified timeframe.

5. The Committee may, through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates, submit to the Security Council, relevant sanctions committee, or United Nations Delisting Focal Point, a request to delist deceased persons on the list, providing relevant documents. It may also submit a similar request with relevant documents for entities that no longer exist or have no actual activity. Before submitting any such request, the Committee shall take appropriate measures to ensure that any heirs or beneficiaries of the funds or other assets to be unfrozen are not listed and do not meet the listing criteria in Articles (7) or (10) of this Decree, and shall inform the Security Council, relevant sanctions committee, United Nations Ombudsman's Office, or United Nations Delisting Focal Point of this.

6. If a listed name is deleted for a Palestinian citizen, a person residing in the State of Palestine, or a person or entity with a workplace or residence in the State of Palestine, the Committee shall, via written notice, inform the person or entity of the deletion of their listed name.

Article (9) Providing Information to the Security Council or Relevant Sanctions Committee

The Committee shall inform the Security Council or sanctions committees, as appropriate, through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates, of the following information:

1. Any additional or updated information it possesses, including any supporting documents related to persons or entities listed on the United Nations List.
2. Any measures taken to apply the listing of a person's name by the United Nations or delist a name when relevant to terrorism or terrorist financing, or proliferation of weapons of mass destruction or financing of proliferation, including details of any funds or other assets identified and frozen or unfrozen.
3. Any information available to answer any requests received from the Security Council or a sanctions committee.

Article (10) National Listing

1. The Committee shall list a person or entity on the National Listing if there are reasonable grounds to suspect they meet any of the following criteria: a. If a person or entity has committed, attempted, or facilitated a terrorist act. b. If the entity is owned or controlled, directly or indirectly, by one or more persons or entities mentioned in item (a) of this paragraph. c. If a person or entity acts on behalf of or at the direction of one or more persons or entities mentioned in item (a) of this paragraph.

2. The Committee may consider listing requests from any local or foreign authority, with requests from foreign competent authorities to be sent via diplomatic channels to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates, which shall refer them to the Committee.

3. The Committee shall exercise its authority under paragraph (1) of this Article regardless of whether a criminal case exists.

4. The proposal shall be made unilaterally without prior notice to the concerned person or entity.

5. The Committee shall create a list containing the names of persons and entities listed pursuant to this Article and maintain that list, known as the "National Listing."

6. The National Listing shall be published on the Committee's website and disseminated to supervisory authorities, competent authorities, other local authorities, financial institutions, and non-financial businesses and professions specified within 16 hours of this Decree entering into force.

7. Amendments to the National Listing shall be published on the Committee's website, including any new listing, modification, or deletion of listing information, and disseminated to supervisory authorities, financial institutions, and non-financial businesses and professions specified pursuant to the Law, within 16 hours of the adoption