The US Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) has designated three HizbAllah-linked financial facilitators and their Lebanon-based travel company. According to OFAC, Adel Diab, Ali Muhammad Daoun, and Jehad Salem Alame together are the founders and partners of Dar Al-Salam for Travel & Tourism, a Lebanon-based travel agency that they own and operate. The OFAC collectively designated them under EO 13224, for having materially assisted, sponsoring, and providing financial, material, and technological support for the accomplishment of Hizballah’s military operations and political objectives. In fact, Hizballah remained under US radar over the last three decades, mainly due to its anti-US and anti-Israel manifesto as well as association with Iran. The United States designated Hezbullah as a Foreign Terrorist Organization in 1997 and Specially Designated Global Terrorist in late 2001. After that, US financial and Counter-Terrorism Apparatuses kept the group activities under continuous monitoring to neutralize its plans against the United States and its allies particularly Israel. Recently, the US under Secretary of the Treasury for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence, Brian Nelson accused the Hezbullah of betraying the people of Lebanon through the generation of profit from insulated business ventures and backdoor political deals while gathering wealth without the knowledge of the Lebanese public.
Hezbollah, is a Lebanon-based political party with having strong military wing. Presently, Hezbollah has extensive military infrastructure, a well-organized political setup, vast Social Services network to foster its interest as a state within a state in politically destabilized Lebanon. Both Hizballah and its popular leader, Hassan Nasrullah conceive power by their opposition of Israel and resistance to the US and western policies in the Middle East region. The group has strong ties with the Iranian government and Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps and plays an instrumental role in enhancing Iran’s influence in the Middle East and North African (MENA) regions. Hezbullah had supported the Bashar-ul-Asad regime against its Sunni rebel forces during the Syrian conflict and also fought against the infamous terror group Islamic State/ ISIS during the past. Presently, Hizbsllah is actively resisting Israeli expansionist designs as it has full control over most parts of Beirut, Southern Lebanon, and Eastern Bekaa valley. Hizballah also blatantly challenges American interests in the region therefore the United States government consistently targets the group through the designation of its members, imposition of economic and travel sanctions against its leaders, facilitators, and entities affiliated with it.
The United States has architected a mechanism against its adversaries to damage their economic growth, military abilities as well as their economic, trade, and military relations with other countries, through the enactment of its laws under various accusations ranging from state oppression to terrorism, human rights abuses to restriction on civil liberties, the dictatorial rule to absolute Monarchy, corruption, and nuclear nonproliferation and so on. The United States massively uses these laws against opposing nations, organizations, entities, and individuals across the world, while such designations have a significant impact on their victims because the global community avoids dealing with designated persons and entities. Currently, the US government is using all available tools to resist Hezbullah’s influence in Lebanon, to obstruct Iran’s agenda, and pave the path for the achievement of American goals in the Middle East, whereas opponents are also playing their cards, the champion will be decided by the time.
