US Sanctions 10 in Hezbollah Cash Network Moving Hundreds of Millions
Updated
Updated · The Guardian · Aug 20
US Sanctions 10 in Hezbollah Cash Network Moving Hundreds of Millions
3 articles · Updated · The Guardian · Aug 20
Summary
Ten people were sanctioned by the US Treasury over a courier network that allegedly moved hundreds of millions of dollars in cash to Hezbollah on commercial flights linking Iran, Turkey, the UAE and Lebanon.
OFAC said the operation let Hezbollah obtain foreign currency and evade sanctions outside the banking system, tying it to a scheme once associated with late IRGC Quds Force finance official Behnam Shahriyari.
Turkish businessman Yunus Alper Yilmaz was identified as the network's hub, accused of using exchange houses, shell companies and bank accounts; nine others allegedly collected, coordinated or physically carried the cash.
The US also re-designated Hezbollah as a specially designated global terrorist, while the State Department said the investigation was coordinated with Turkish authorities and part of Washington's broader pressure campaign on Tehran.
The move comes amid rising Turkey-Israel tensions over Syria, and freezes any US-linked assets of the 10 while broadly barring Americans from dealing with them.