The United Nations has imposed international sanctions on four British members of the Islamic State for the first time, a move aimed at stemming the flow of recruits to the organization. Responding to a request from the British government, the United Nations placed two men and two women, all described as active online recruiters for the group, on its sanctions list on Monday.
The four Britons will now be subject to travel bans and asset freezes under the terms of a United Nations resolution initially passed to fight support for Al Qaeda.
More than 700 Britons have traveled to Syria and Iraq to fight for militant groups, and around half of them have returned, according to the British police.
The Islamic State, also known as ISIS or ISIL, has drawn nearly 30,000 recruits from abroad, including an estimated 4,500 from the West. The group gets an average of about 1,000 fighters a month, although there has been a trickle of defectors in recent months.
The United Nations identified the four Britons as Omar Hussain from High Wycombe, England; Nasser Muthana from Cardiff, Wales; Aqsa Mahmood from Glasgow; and Sally-Anne Jones from Chatham, England.
Read more: New York Times
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