عربي English Türkçe اردو فارسى
Logo
Latest News
Gulf

Bahrain Accuses Future Bank, Iranian Banks of Money Laundering

The pink supermoon rises next to Bahrain World Trade Centre in Manama, Bahrain April 7, 2020. (Reuters)
The pink supermoon rises next to Bahrain World Trade Centre in Manama, Bahrain April 7, 2020. (Reuters)
TT
TT

Bahrain Accuses Future Bank, Iranian Banks of Money Laundering

The pink supermoon rises next to Bahrain World Trade Centre in Manama, Bahrain April 7, 2020. (Reuters)
The pink supermoon rises next to Bahrain World Trade Centre in Manama, Bahrain April 7, 2020. (Reuters)

The high criminal court of Bahrain accused on Thursday the Iran-owned Future Bank, five of its officials and several Iranian banks of money laundering.

The bank officials were sentenced to five years in prison and fined 1 million dinars each, report the Bahrain news agency (BNA).

The other involved banks were fined 1 million dinars each and the financial sums at the heart of the case were seized. They are estimated at around 43 million dollars.

Earlier this year, the Public Prosecution said that the Future Bank, which operated under the supervision of Bank Melli Iran and Bank Saderat Iran, carried out thousands of international financial transactions while providing cover for Iranian entities by concealing and deliberately removing basic information when transferring funds via the SWIFT network.

Bahraini authorities suspended activities of the bank in 2012 due to UN sanctions on Iran. Manama has been accusing the bank of being a terrorism financing channel since Feb. 14, 2011.

Most Viewed

 
 
Gulf

Kuwait Jails 13 Citizens, Fines them $87 Mn for Hezbollah Funding

A general view of the Kuwait Palace of Justice in Kuwait City, June 16, 2013. (Reuters)
A general view of the Kuwait Palace of Justice in Kuwait City, June 16, 2013. (Reuters)
TT
TT

Kuwait Jails 13 Citizens, Fines them $87 Mn for Hezbollah Funding

A general view of the Kuwait Palace of Justice in Kuwait City, June 16, 2013. (Reuters)
A general view of the Kuwait Palace of Justice in Kuwait City, June 16, 2013. (Reuters)

Kuwait’s Court of Cassation on Monday sentenced 13 citizens to three years in prison for raising funds through a charity to support Lebanon’s Hezbollah.

The court also fined them 27 million Kuwaiti dinars ($87 million), overturning a previous acquittal by a lower court.

The court that issued the sentencing was presided over by Judge Abdullah Jassim Al-Abdullah.

Initially, the Criminal Court had acquitted the defendants, citing the absence of legislation explicitly criminalizing unlicensed fundraising for public purposes since the establishment of Kuwait's Social Affairs Department on December 14, 1954.

The court said this legal gap limited its authority under Article 132 of the Code of Criminal Procedures and Trials. However, the decision was reversed by the higher court.

The defendants had been interrogated in November 2021 over alleged financial support to organizations linked to Hezbollah.

At the time, the Public Prosecution ordered their detention, and security authorities conducted extensive investigations into financial transfers suspected of funding such groups in Lebanon.

The case dates back to November 2021. The charges included significant financial transfers made over several years to foreign entities, including in Lebanon, prompting authorities to scrutinize transaction records.

The defendants denied the charges, claiming they had worked with a charity committee for 30 years, primarily sponsoring orphans in Lebanon and other countries.

In March 2024, the Court of Cassation classified Hezbollah as a banned terrorist group, describing it as an armed organization working to undermine Kuwait’s system and spread Iran’s revolutionary ideology.

The ruling officially confirmed Hezbollah’s designation as a terrorist entity under Kuwaiti law.