The United States Impedes Hizballah Financing by Sanctioning Seven Individuals

Antony J. Blinken, Secretary of State

The threat that Hizballah poses to the United States, our allies, and interests in the Middle East and globally, calls for countries around the world to take steps to restrict its activities and disrupt its facilitation networks. We applaud the countries in Europe, and South and Central America that have taken action against Hizballah in recent years and call on other governments around the world to follow suit.

Today, the United States is designating seven individuals involved in financial operations with Hizballah ties to continue impeding the group’s ability to operate in the global financial system. The United States is designating these individuals pursuant to Executive Order 13224, as amended, for acting for or on behalf of Hizballah or Al-Qard al-Hassan (AQAH), which provides cover for Hizballah’s financial activity; both Hizballah and AQAH are already designated under the same authority. While AQAH purports to serve the Lebanese people, in practice it illicitly moves funds through shell accounts and facilitators, exposing Lebanese financial institutions to sanctions risk related to conducting business with a designated entity. Moreover, by hoarding cash that is desperately needed by the Lebanese economy, AQAH empowers Hizballah to build its own support base and compromise the stability of the Lebanese state.

One of the seven individuals designated, Ibrahim Ali Daher, serves as the director of Hizballah’s Central Finance Unit, which oversees the group’s overall budget and spending. The remaining individuals designated used the cover of personal accounts to evade sanctions targeting AQAH and transferred approximately $500 million on behalf of AQAH.

These designations reinforce recent U.S. action against Hizballah financiers who have provided support or services to Hizballah. The United States will continue to take action to disrupt Hizballah’s operations.