US strikes Hezbollah’s financial lifeline with new sanctions

The United States, on February 10, announced sanctions against a gold exchange accused of helping channel Iranian financial support to Lebanon-based Hezbollah, which Washington designates as a terrorist organisation.

According to the US Treasury Department, cited by Israeli media, the sanctioned exchange is linked to Al-Qard al-Hassan, a Hezbollah-run financial institution that is already subject to US sanctions. Branches of Al-Qard al-Hassan were targeted in Israeli airstrikes in 2024.

“Hezbollah is a threat to peace and stability in the Middle East,” Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said in a statement. “Treasury will work to cut these terrorists off from the global financial system to give Lebanon a chance to be peaceful and prosperous again.”

The Treasury said it imposed sanctions on Jood SARL, a gold exchange that it said “masquerades as a non-governmental organisation” and serves as a mechanism to maintain Hezbollah’s cash flow from Iran.

In addition, the United States sanctioned several individuals and entities accused of supporting Hezbollah’s financial operations. Among them are Russian national Andrey Viktorovich Borisov and Lebanese citizen Mohamed Nayef Maged. The Treasury also said it would sanction a number of shipping companies connected to the network.

The measures freeze any assets held by the listed individuals and entities in the United States and make it illegal for Americans to engage in financial transactions with them.

Lebanon holds one of the largest gold reserves in the Middle East, and its government is currently debating whether the stockpile could be used to help revive the country’s severely weakened economy, particularly as global gold prices have surged.

The sanctions come against the backdrop of a US-brokered ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah that took effect in November 2024 after two months of open conflict in Lebanon. The fighting included an Israeli ground operation in southern Lebanon aimed at enabling the return of roughly 60,000 residents of northern Israel who had been displaced by near-daily Hezbollah attacks.

Under the terms of the ceasefire, both Israel and Hezbollah were required to withdraw from southern Lebanon, with the Lebanese army taking their place. Israel has since pulled out from all but five strategic positions along the border.

Since the ceasefire took effect, the Israel Defence Forces say they have killed more than 400 Hezbollah operatives and members of allied armed groups in strikes, hit hundreds of Hezbollah targets, and carried out more than 1,200 raids and other limited operations in southern Lebanon.

Hezbollah, weakened by the war and still facing regular Israeli strikes, is now under mounting internal and international pressure to surrender its weapons.

Last month, the Lebanese army announced that it had completed the first phase of its plan to disarm Hezbollah, covering areas in southern Lebanon between the Israeli border and the Litani River.

By Tamilla Hasanova