The U.S. Treasury's sanctions enforcement arm removes several Democratic Republic of the Congo-related names from its Specially Designated Nationals List on Sept. 23, 2026. The changes cover aliases tied to Francois Olenga and related Safari Club entities in Kinshasa, while a separate Cuba listing receives only an administrative address correction.
Highlights
- OFAC removed Francois Olenga and several name variations, along with Safari Club-related entities linked to the Democratic Republic of the Congo, from the SDN List.
- Banks and exporters must update sanctions screening processes as these Congo-linked entries no longer trigger blocking obligations under U.S. OFAC regulations as of the notice date.
- An unrelated OFAC administrative change altered the address for Cuba's Centro de Investigacion y Desarrollo de Armamento de Infanteria (CIDAI), with no new sanctions or listings imposed.
OFAC update covers Congo-linked delistings
As reported by Office of Foreign Assets Control, the sanctions update removes Francois Olenga from the SDN List along with multiple name variations attached to the same individual. The deleted entries include Olenga, Olenga Tete, Olenga Tate, Okunji and Otshundi, all tied to the Democratic Republic of the Congo.OFAC identifies Olenga as a general and head of the Military House of the President, with Kinshasa listed as the associated location. The notice also removes Safari Club, Centre de Loisir Safari Club and Safari Beach, entities linked to Olenga and registered in Kinshasa.
Compliance impact for sanctions screening
The update matters for banks, exporters and other compliance-sensitive businesses that screen counterparties against U.S. sanctions lists. The removals mean those specific Congo-related entries no longer appear on OFAC's SDN List as of the release date stated in the notice.OFAC also says an unrelated administrative list change affects a Cuba entry for Centro de Investigacion y Desarrollo de Armamento de Infanteria, or CIDAI. That amendment only changes the address notation from 8 1/2 instead of the character 1/2 format, and the agency says no new listings are added and no new sanctions apply to that name.
In our earlier coverage of tightening U.S. sanctions pressure on Iran’s aviation links, we explained how neighbouring countries and several carriers moved to halt or limit flights as compliance risks increased. The article highlighted how these restrictions added strain to Iran’s already constrained civilian fleet and raised broader concerns for trade, travel and access to the global financial system.
Latest Sanctions News
-
Afghanistan
-
Albania
-
Algeria
-
Angola
-
Argentina
-
Armenia
-
Australia
-
Austria
-
Azerbaijan
-
Bahamas
-
Bahrain
-
Bangladesh
-
Belarus
-
Belgium
-
Bolivia
-
Botswana
-
Brazil
-
Brunei
-
Bulgaria
-
Cambodia
-
Cameroon
-
Canada
-
Chile
-
China
-
Colombia
-
Congo
-
Costa Rica
-
Cote d'Ivoire
-
Croatia
-
Cuba
-
Cyprus
-
Czechia
-
DR Congo
-
Denmark
-
Dominican Republic
-
Ecuador
-
Egypt
-
El Salvador
-
Estonia
-
Eswatini
-
Ethiopia
-
Finland
-
France
-
Georgia
-
Germany
-
Ghana
-
Greece
-
Haiti
-
Hong Kong
-
Hungary
-
India
-
Indonesia
-
Iran, Islamic republic
-
Iraq
-
Ireland
-
Israel
-
Italy
-
Jamaica
-
Japan
-
Jordan
-
Kazakhstan
-
Kenya
-
Korea
-
Kuwait
-
Kyrgyzstan
-
Laos
-
Latvia
-
Lebanon
-
Lesotho
-
Libya
-
Lithuania
-
Luxembourg
-
Madagascar
-
Malaysia
-
Malta
-
Mauritius
-
Mexico
-
Moldova
-
Mongolia
-
Montenegro
-
Morocco
-
Mozambique
-
Myanmar
-
Namibia
-
Nepal
-
Netherlands
-
New Zealand
-
Nigeria
-
North Macedonia
-
Norway
-
Oman
-
Pakistan
-
Palestine
-
Panama
-
Papua New Guinea
-
Paraguay
-
Peru
-
Philippines
-
Poland
-
Portugal
-
Puerto Rico
-
Qatar
-
Reunion
-
Romania
-
Rwanda
-
Saudi Arabia
-
Serbia
-
Singapore
-
Slovakia
-
Slovenia
-
Somalia
-
South Africa
-
Spain
-
Sri Lanka
-
Sweden
-
Switzerland
-
Syria
-
Taiwan
-
Tajikistan
-
Tanzania
-
Thailand
-
Trinidad and Tobago
-
Tunisia
-
Turkey
-
UAE
-
Uganda
-
Ukraine
-
United Kingdom
-
United States
-
Uruguay
-
Uzbekistan
-
Venezuela
-
Vietnam
-
Yemen
-
Zambia
-
Zimbabwe
- Forex
- Crypto
