Washington targets Hezbollah-linked financiers over Iranian money transfers

The U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) on Thursday announced new sanctions targeting individuals accused of channeling "tens of millions of dollars from Iran to Hezbollah in 2025" through Lebanon’s cash-based financial system.

The move, part of Washington’s broader effort to support the group’s disarmament, designates Ossama Jaber, Ja’far Muhammad Qasir, and Samer Kasbar under Executive Order 13224 for allegedly providing financial and logistical support to the group.

According to OFAC, the sanctioned individuals used licensed and unlicensed money exchange houses to move “Iranian oil and other goods” into Lebanon—that Hezbollah then used to finance its paramilitary operations, rebuild its infrastructure, and undermine government authority.

“Lebanon has an opportunity to be free, prosperous, and secure—but that can only happen if Hezbollah is fully disarmed and cut off from Iran’s funding and control,” said Under Secretary of the Treasury for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence John K. Hurley. 

“We will work with our Lebanese partners to create a resilient economy that puts the interests of all Lebanese citizens front and center.”

The Treasury stressed that Lebanon must continue “addressing the risks posed by Hezbollah’s financial activities and the proliferation of unscrupulous exchange houses, especially in the wake of the country’s 2019 financial crisis.”