The United States said Wednesday it was imposing sanctions on Hezbollah financiers in coordination with Qatar.
The Treasury Department announced that it was taking action against seven people including Qatari nationals Ali al-Banai and Ali Lari, who it said have secretly sent tens of millions of dollars to the Iranian-backed Lebanese group.
Secretary of State Antony Blinken said that Hezbollah uses “global networks of financiers and front companies to support its malign activity” and praised the cooperation of Qatar.
“This represents one of the most significant joint actions we have taken with a Gulf Cooperation Council partner to date and underscores our extensive bilateral cooperation on countering terrorism finance,” Blinken said in a statement.
“Hezbollah seeks to abuse the international financial system by utilizing global networks of financiers and front companies to support its malign activity,” he added.
“There is growing international recognition of Hezbollah’s true nature, with 14 countries in Europe and South and Central America taking significant steps to designate, restrict, or ban Hezbollah in the past several years. We urge other governments to follow suit,” he stressed.
Nearby Bahrain also took action by freezing the bank accounts of al-Banai’s nephew on the island and will prosecute three people, the Treasury Department said.
Qatar has frequently come under criticism for not doing more to prevent fund-raising for extremist groups on its soil.
