NARRATIVE SUMMARIES OF REASONS
QI.C.347.15. Denis Mamadou Gerhard Cuspert
Date on which the narrative summary became available on the Committee’s website: 11 February 2015
Denis Mamadou Gerhard Cuspert was listed on 11 February 2015 pursuant to paragraphs 2 and 4 of resolution 2161 (2014) as being associated with Al-Qaida for “participating in the financing, planning, facilitating, preparing, or perpetrating of acts or activities by, in conjunction with, under the name of, on behalf of, or in support of”, “supplying, selling or transferring arms and related materiel to” and “recruiting for” Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant, listed as Al-Qaida in Iraq (QE.J.115.04).
Additional information:
Denis Mamadou Gerhard Cuspert, by acquiring training in handling firearms as well as obtaining, storing and passing firearms to others, committed a serious act of violent subversion against life, which is intended to impair and capable of impairing the existence or security of a state. Denis Cuspert is accused of murder for the attack on Sha'ar gas field, the Syrian Arab Republic on 17 July 2014 and of war crimes for killing of prisoners from the Shaitat tribe in August 2014.
After leaving Germany on 21 June 2012, Denis Cuspert travelled to the Mersa Matruh area in Egypt to undergo training in handling firearms in armed conflict at a camp for militants. This is revealed in an online video dated 10 January 2014 entitled “A meeting between a Sheikh and a Mujahid on the field of honour”. In this video clip Denis Cuspert described individual stages of his trip to the Syrian Arab Republic.
After travelling on to Libya, he continued his military training in the region around Darna with an unknown group of violent extremists. From early 2013 he trained new fighters in the Mersa Matruh area and acquired firearms and stored and passed them to the apprentice fighters for training purposes.
After his militant training, Denis Cuspert travelled to the Syrian Arab Republic on several occasions and was involved in clashes between violent extremists or rebel insurgents and Syrian government forces in Aleppo.
By at least August 2013 Denis Cuspert had joined Junud aI-Sham (not listed) and took part in battles in the Syrian coastal province of Latakia, close to the Turkish border. In August 2013, Junud al-Sham fought several battles against Syrian government forces. Among other operations the group was involved in a large-scale offensive targeting Alawite villages. Junud aI-Sham also had a presence in and to the north of the city of Aleppo. Junud al-Sham maintained close contact with AI-Nusrah Front for the People of the Levant (QE.A.137.14). It also had connections with Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), listed as Al-Qaida in Iraq (QE.J.115.04), and was working with both organizations in August 2013. Relations between ISIL and Junud al-Sham rapidly deteriorated; Denis Cuspert therefore left Junud al-Sham and joined ISIL by the late summer of 2013. At the end of August 2013 he was critically wounded during an air strike in the Syrian Arab Republic.
On 6 August 2013 the Junud al-Sham video entitled “Syria Latakia Sopka Durin” appeared on the Internet. The video features the organization's emir Abu aI-Walid, alias Muslim (not listed), taking viewers on a tour of the conflict zone while describing military campaigns to conquer mountain posts in the Durin region near Latakia in the period around 5 August 2013. In this video Denis Cuspert can be seen in the background several times. In another video made at the same time and in the same place as the one mentioned above, Denis Cuspert appeared openly and described previous battles for enemy posts. On 18 July 2014 three other videos were discovered on Facebook user accounts and YouTube in which Denis Cuspert can be seen or heard. The theme of the videos connected them with the ISIL conquest of the Sha’ar gas field near Homs in the Syrian Arab Republic.
With his knowledge of the goals and ideologies of the above-mentioned terrorist organizations, Denis Cuspert made his own individual support to these organizations. He also provided media support for the organisations and worked in his role as a firearms trainer for the organizations, Denis Cuspert also continued to play an active role in fighting on behalf of lSIL even after his life threatening injuries at the end of August 2013.
Related listed individuals and entities:
Al-Qaida (QE.A.4.01), listed on 6 October 2001
Al-Qaida in Iraq (QE.J.115.04), listed on 18 October 2004
AI-Nusrah Front for the People of the Levant (QE.A.137.14), listed on 14 May 2014