United States Imposes Sanctions on Smuggling Network Linked to Quds Force and Hezbollah

Washington, Aug 20 (KUNA) -- The U.S. Department of the Treasury announced on Thursday the imposition of sanctions on a smuggling network linked to the Quds Force and Lebanon’s Hezbollah. In a statement, the Treasury said the sanctions targeted 10 individuals it said were part of a network responsible for transferring cash to Hezbollah through couriers who used commercial flights between Lebanon, Turkey, and Iran, noting that the network had moved amounts reaching hundreds of millions of dollars among these countries. The statement added that the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) also re-designated Hezbollah under Executive Order 13224, as amended, based on its work on behalf of the Iranian regime and under the command of the Quds Force of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps. It pointed out that “Hezbollah and its allies use a range of financing mechanisms to generate and transfer funds across the region, including oil smuggling, illicit shipping, the sale of goods, and the smuggling of large quantities of cash.” For its part, the U.S. Department of State said in a statement that “the Iranian regime has used Hezbollah for decades to spread terror throughout the Middle East, and today the U.S. Department of the Treasury is re-designating Hezbollah due to its actions supporting the Quds Force of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps.” The statement affirmed that “the United States will not hesitate to target Iran’s financial support networks, including those that enable Hezbollah to threaten peace, undermine the sovereignty of the State of Lebanon, and endanger the security of our regional allies.” (End) A.M.M./M.A.A.