US sanctions 16 individuals and companies linked to Hezbollah funding

The U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) has designated a network of 16 individuals and entities led by Hezbollah financier and former public investment official Alaa Hassan Hamieh (Alaa Hamieh) on Friday.  

Alaa Hamieh, according to a Treasury statement, “oversees a network of companies, controlled through family members and close associates, that launder and raise funds for Hezbollah’s finance team.”

“These individuals and companies—located in Lebanon, Syria, Poland, Slovenia, Qatar, and Canada—have been involved in numerous economic projects and are estimated to have enabled the diversion of over $100 million since 2020. This network represents a critical source of funding for Hezbollah, which continues to embrace violence despite calls to disarm,” it added. 

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent also noted that the group continues to divert funds that “rightfully belong to the Lebanese people” to finance its operations. “This action targets key actors within its global financial network that sustain its militant activities.” 

The sanctions targeted the following individuals: Hamdan Ali Al Lakis, Maya Boustany, Raoof Fadel, Alaa Hassan Hamieh, Daniel Hamieh, Mohamad Hasan Wehbe, Bahaa Addin Hashem, Mohamad Jamil Salami, Hala Muhammad Tarshishi, and Muhammad Hasan Hamieh.

The sanctions also affected several companies, including: “Lebanon-based Seven Seas SAL Offshore, Seven Seas Group S.A.R.L., and Calllync S.A.L. Offshore; Poland-based Calllync Spolka Z Organiczona Odpowiedzialnoscia (Calllync S.p. Z.O.O.); and Slovenia-based Calllync Telekomunikacijske Storitve D.O.O. (Calllync D.O.O.).”