In 2008, Hezbollah sent its fighters into Beirut after the Lebanese government took steps the group viewed as existential threats. Today, Hezbollah again feels cornered. If its financial lifeline is squeezed hard enough, the precedent of 2008 looms large.
WHY NAIM QASSEM IS ANGRY
With Lebanon’s banking system barely functioning, huge amounts of Iranian cash now flow through money-exchange houses. These are far harder to monitor than banks and have become critical to Hezbollah’s ability to move and hide funds.
Recent U.S. Treasury sanctions targeted individuals accused of transferring millions—sometimes over a billion dollars—from Iran’s Quds Force to Hezbollah through networks of licensed and unlicensed exchange companies. Washington is demanding tighter Lebanese oversight of these institutions, including reporting requirements for transactions above about $1,000.