The Israeli Air Force carried out a series of nighttime, intelligence-led strikes against dozens of facilities and sites used by the terrorist group Hezbollah to finance its terrorist activities against the State of Israel, the military announced on Monday. . The attacks were carried out in the areas of Beirut, southern Lebanon and deep into the Lebanese territory.
This money, used by Hezbollah for terrorist activities, was stored by the Al-Qard al-Hassan Association, which directly finances Hezbollah’s terrorist activities, including the purchase of weapons and payments to operatives in Hezbollah’s military wing. The terrorist group Hezbollah keeps billions of dollars in the branches of the society, including funds held directly under the name of the terrorist group.
Before the attack, several measures were taken to reduce the risk of harm to civilians, including advance warnings given through different platforms to civilians in the area.
Arab media reported several attacks in downtown Beirut on Sunday after an announcement by IDF spokesman R. Admiral Daniel Hagari that the IDF will begin a physical attack on Hezbollah’s financial infrastructure by directly attacking financial buildings in Lebanon.
The IDF said it would begin bombing attacks against Hezbollah’s financial infrastructure, which includes a variety of money laundering schemes, from lending to charities to gold mines.
Al-Qard Al-Hasan Association (AQAH) is Hezbollah’s main financial institution, according to former Shin Bet (Israeli Security Agency) agent Uzi Shaya, who was quoted in Globes. AQAH appears to operate as a charitable Islamic banking group, providing loans to many Lebanese for everything from daily goods to marriages, tuition fees and housing.
Al Manar, a Lebanese media outlet owned by Hezbollah, reported on Sunday, following the IDF’s announcement, that AQAH had gone bankrupt and that the IDF was deliberately targeting the association to disrupt Lebanese life.
The Meir Amit Intelligence and Terrorism Center (ITIC) describes the group as specializing in quasi-banking activities, which mainly provide loans and operate statutory community charitable funds. Islamic faith (which forbids charging interest).
Part of the goal is to provide strong economic investment to Lebanese Shiites to keep them engaged in the conflict and willing to cooperate. According to Globes, the association also provides loans to the Palestinian community.
The association says most of the money is provided through loans, membership fees and donations.
The ITIC said it had no way of verifying whether other funds are being sent by external actors such as Iran, and its investigation showed that this was very likely.
Ineffective sanctions
The US Treasury approved the partnership in 2016. However, ITIC said the sanctions were largely ineffective, as AQAH’s loan volume increased after the sanctions.
AQAH is estimated to manage multi-billion dollar assets with over 400,000 accounts. He was accused of directing all of Hezbollah’s financial activities, including front businesses and charities, according to Uzi Shaya, who was quoted in Globes.
Shaya said that AQAH held all kinds of financial capital that it used as collateral for loans, including gold and jewelry.
He also said that AQAH was supported by the states of Lebanon and Iran. “It has also developed an independent self-financing capacity, provided primarily by various charities, businesses and a criminal network,” Shaya told Globes.
Many of the financial transfers were made in cash or digital currency, with large sums of money flowing through Hezbollah-controlled Beirut Airport.
“This is one of the richest terrorist groups in Iran, with an extensive smuggling network in Latin America, and also with bases in Africa. Their contacts have agents who move millions of dollars in money from one place to another, all over the world,” said Dr. Haim Koren to Globes.
2024-10-21 08:31:00
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