US Treasury Designates Lebanese Environmental Organization, Green...

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On Wednesday, the US Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) targeted the Lebanon-based environmental organization, Green Without Borders (GWB), and its leader, Zuhair Subhi Nahla.

A statement from the US Treasury alleges that GWB has been covertly supporting Hezbollah's operations along the Blue Line, which demarcates Lebanon from Israel, while outwardly functioning as an environmental activist group.

Brian E. Nelson, Under Secretary of the Treasury for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence, remarked in the statement, “The United States rejects Hezbollah’s cynical efforts to cloak its destabilizing terrorist activities with false environmentalism.” Nelson further assured the US's dedication to authentic environmental initiatives in Lebanon and the relentless pursuit of Hezbollah and its network.

According to the US Treasury's statement, the designation of GWB and Nahla is aligned with Executive Order (E.O.) 13224, which focuses on entities and individuals associated with terrorist activities.

Founded in 2013 with an environmental conservation premise, GWB's activities, as per the US Treasury's statement, deviate from their ecological narrative. The organization’s various outposts, populated by Hezbollah operatives, have purportedly served as disguises for Hezbollah's underground ammunition depots. These positions not only interfered with the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon's peacekeeping missions but also barred external scrutiny.

The statement additionally draws attention to GWB's public association with Hezbollah’s construction wing, Jihad al-Bina, an entity previously blacklisted by OFAC in 2007.

GWB is now under scrutiny for its alleged material support to Hezbollah.

Zuhair Subhi Nahla's connection with Hezbollah stands highlighted in the US Treasury's statement. Despite Nahla's repudiations of formal affiliations with Hezbollah, the statement underscores his open recognition of ties between himself, GWB, and the known terrorist faction.

The basis for Nahla's designation lies in his leadership role at GWB, an organization flagged under E.O. 13224, as elucidated in the statement.