Angola: UK imposes sanctions on Isabel dos Santos

The United Kingdom has barred Angolan billionaire Isabel dos Santos and frozen her UK assets, the government announced in what it said was part of a new crackdown on “dirty money”.

The measures on Thursday were the first step in tightening Britain’s anti-corruption sanctions regime as promised in July’s election, the Labour government said.

“These unscrupulous individuals selfishly deprive their fellow citizens of much-needed funding for education, healthcare and infrastructure – for their own enrichment,” Foreign Secretary David Lammy said in a statement.

Dos Santos, whose father Jose Eduardo dos Santos served as Angola’s president for 38 years until 2017, is Africa’s first female billionaire and has faced corruption accusations in Angola and elsewhere for years. She denied the allegations and said she is the target of a long-running political vendetta.

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She was sanctioned by the United States in 2021 for “involvement in significant corruption” and is barred from entering the country.