US sanctions 10 individuals for 'transferring cash' to Hezbollah

The US Department of the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) has sanctioned 10 individuals linked to a network facilitating cash transfers to Hezbollah. This network employs couriers on commercial flights between Lebanon, Turkey, and Iran to move substantial sums of money, bypassing the formal financial system to acquire foreign currency and circumvent sanctions.

OFAC also re-designated Hezbollah for support to the Iranian regime under the control of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps-Qods Force. This action aligns with the US counterterrorism authority under Executive Order (E.O.) 13224, amended. The Treasury Department notes Hezbollah's utilization of various financing schemes, such as oil smuggling, illicit shipping, commodity sales, and bulk cash smuggling, to generate and transfer funds across the region.

The targeted network, previously linked to the late IRGC-QF finance official Behnam Shahriyari, exemplifies methods used to funnel support to terrorist proxy groups in the region.