Key facts
- The US and Gulf Cooperation Council states sanctioned five entities and 16 individuals linked to Hezbollah's financial network.
- The Terrorist Financing Targeting Center (TFTC), co-chaired by the US and Saudi Arabia, led the coordinated action.
- Targeted entities include Al-Qard al-Hasan Association, described as an unlicensed bank, and Bayt al-Mal, Hezbollah's unofficial treasury.
- Ibrahim Ali Daher, head of Hezbollah's Central Finance Unit, was among the sanctioned individuals.
- The sanctions aim to disrupt Hezbollah's funding channels and access to the formal financial system.
The United States, in coordination with Saudi Arabia and other Gulf Cooperation Council members through the Terrorist Financing Targeting Center (TFTC), has imposed sanctions on five entities and 16 individuals accused of operating within Hezbollah's financial network. The Treasury Department alleges these measures are designed to disrupt the group's funding channels and restrict its access to the formal financial system.
Central to the sanctions are Al-Qard al-Hasan Association and Bayt al-Mal. The Treasury claims Al-Qard al-Hasan, which presents itself as a non-governmental organization, functions as an unlicensed bank, facilitating financial services for Hezbollah. Bayt al-Mal is described by US officials as Hezbollah's unofficial treasury, responsible for managing and investing the group's assets and acting as a liaison with Lebanon's banking sector, operating under the direct supervision of Hezbollah's secretary-general.
Among the sanctioned individuals is Ibrahim Ali Daher, identified as the head of Hezbollah's Central Finance Unit, which oversees the organization's budget and expenditures. Other sanctioned officials include senior figures at Al-Qard al-Hasan and Bayt al-Mal. The Treasury alleges that these individuals facilitated the transfer of over $500 million through Lebanese and US banks over more than a decade, despite previous sanctions.
The TFTC, established in 2017, aims to coordinate sanctions and intelligence sharing to disrupt terrorist financing. This action marks the coalition's ninth coordinated sanctions effort and the third under the current US administration. The measures extend beyond asset freezes to disrupt informal networks, including exchange houses and gold trading, that Hezbollah has used to circumvent existing sanctions.