U.S. Adds Mbada Diamonds, Marange Resources to Sanctions List

The United States has added Mbada Diamonds and Marange Resources to its list of sanctioned entities, the Department of the Treasury stated.

The Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) updated its ‘specially designated nationals list to include the two companies, which operate diamond mines in Zimbabwe’s Marange fields. The listing extends to any aliases they might operate under, including Block Wood Mining and Condurango Investments.

Sanctioning these companies follows the recent decision by the Kimberley Process to allow diamond exports from the Marange Resources and Mbada Diamonds respective mines despite reports of human rights abuses associated with the operations.

Marange Resources and Mbada Diamonds both operate their Marange mines in a joint venture with the Zimbabwe Mining Development Corporation (ZMDC), a state owned company which was already on the OFAC list.

U.S. citizens are prohibited from dealing with individuals or companies on the expansive list. As part of its enforcement efforts, OFAC publishes a list of individuals and companies owned or controlled by, or acting for or on behalf of, targeted countries and lists individuals, groups, and entities, such as terrorists and narcotics traffickers designated under programs that are not country-specific.

Following the Kimberley Process decision on Marange in November, Rapaport Group warned members of its RapNet trading network not to deal in these Marange diamonds.

-Rapaport