“We briefed Treasury on Toyota’s supply chains in the Middle East and the procedures that Toyota has in place to protect supply chain integrity”.
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The global terrorist group in Syria and Iraq, ISIS, relies on a fleet of Toyota pickup trucks on their front lines.
The Hilux, smaller than the Tacoma and Tundra pickups that Toyota sells in the USA, is a hit in areas where dirt roads and rough terrain prevails – and has been a favorite of military forces.
Lewis said that Toyota has a “strict policy to not sell vehicles to potential purchasers who may use or modify them for paramilitary or terrorist activities,” but that the manufacturer can not track trucks that have been stolen by IS or purchased by the group through middlemen.
Toyota’s Hilux pick-ups, the overseas version of the Tacoma, have appeared in ISIS’s videos in Iraq, Syria and Libya, loaded with heavy weapons while the group patrols streets, ABC News reported.
“We are committed to complying fully with the laws and regulations of each country or region where we operate, and require our dealers and distributors to do the same”, the company said. It’s fast, durable, and you can mount a machine gun on it. ISIS’s videos show them with plenty of Hiluxes and Land Cruisers.
The Treasury Department’s Terrorism and Financial Intelligence wing monitors monetary transfers and the flow of goods that could aid militants, but the department declined to comment on any ongoing inquiry Wednesday. They should be able to figure it out… how are these trucks getting there.
“This is a question we’ve been asking our neighbors”, Faily said.
The US Treasury has recently opened an inquiry about the so-called Islamic States (ISIS/ISIL) use of large numbers of brand-new Toyota trucks.
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The Treasury Department is collaborating and “working closely with foreign counterparts and stakeholders” on the issue, its main target being the understanding and ending of ISIS’ economic activities.
