US places 4 Hezbollah figures on sanctions blacklist

The US Treasury imposed sanctions on three Hezbollah military officials and a businessman tied to the group on Tuesday, citing their support for the regime of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.

The Treasury named Mustafa Badr Al Din, said to be in charge of Hezbollah's military operations in Syria; and Fu'ad Shukr and Ibrahim Aqil, both members of Hezbollah's top military body, the Jihad Council, and both involved in the group's military activities in Syria, in support of the Assad regime.

The Treasury added that Aqil was involved in the hostage taking of two Germans in the late 1980s and bombings in Paris in 1986.

Also named was Abd al Nur Shalan, which the US called the "point person for the procurement and transshipment of weapons and materiel for (Hezbollah) and its Syrian partners for at least 15 years."

Being designated for sanctions allows the Treasury to freeze any assets on US territory tied to the individuals, and forbids any Americans or US institutions from doing business with them.

The Treasury said the new action was the latest in efforts the US government is taking against Lebanon-based Hezbollah "for its violent terrorist activities and its support to the Assad regime's attacks against the Syrian people."

"We will pursue all of Hezbollah's revenue sources, whether charitable fundraising, criminal proceeds, or state sponsorship," said Adam Szubin, Treasury acting under secretary for terrorism and financial intelligence.
Source: AFP