By The Jerusalem Post (World News) | Created at 2024-10-23 17:45:14 | Updated at 2024-10-23 19:24:32
1 hour ago
The IDF said that Hezbollah sources funds either through theft from Lebanese civilians or direct cash injection from the Iranian Treasury.
By YUVAL BARNEA OCTOBER 23, 2024 20:39
Screenshot from an IDF video exposing the sources of financing for Hezbollah's terror activities, October 21, 2024.
(photo credit: SCREENSHOT/X)
Hezbollah sources its finances from a variety of sources, including outright theft and a direct supply of funds from Tehran, the IDF revealed on Monday.
This came after the IDF attacked the physical infrastructure of Hezbollah's primary financial instrument, the Al-Qard Al-Hasan (AQAH) Association, on Monday.
The IDF said that Hezbollah sources funds either through theft from Lebanese civilians or direct cash injection from the Iranian Treasury.
One way the money arrives in Lebanon is through cash smuggling by the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) Quds Force, who smuggle oil and money into Syria, where it's transferred to Syrian companies for laundering.
Where does the money come from?
The IDF claims that the Syrian "BS Oil Services" company is used as the front business, which is owned by the Katerji family, headed by Baraa Katerji.
Katerji has been accused of running front businesses for Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad since at least 2017, according to the Alma Research Center.
He was accused of establishing and maintaining a far-reaching network of contacts across the Shia communities in Syria and Lebanon.
Katerji was the primary figure on the Syrian front until he was killed by a strike near the Lebanese-Syrian border in mid-July.
Once the money has been laundered, Hezbollah's specialist smuggling unit bring the money into Lebanon where it is deposited in an AQAH account.
The IDF also accused Iran of using its embassy in Beirut as cover for IRGC cash smuggling operations. They accused the IRGC Quds Force of flying cash made from oil sales into Beirut under diplomatic cover and then directly handed over to Hezbollah.
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Hezbollah takes the cash and reinvests it into economic ventures in Lebanon, including reinvesting into gas and industrial activities in Syria, Lebanon, Yemen, and Turkey.
These ventures then provide more money for Hezbollah's terror activities.
The IDF then focused on Muhammed Jafar Kasir, the leader of Hezbollah's smuggling unit, as their primary financial manager.
Kasir was killed in a strike on his apartment building in Beirut on October 1, followed two days later by another strike that killed his brother. The Kasir brothers were instrumental in the growth of Hezbollah, having been with the group since soon after its founding in the early 1980s.
The IDF then focused on how Hezbollah exploits the Lebanese people in order to line its pockets.
They discussed how AQAH uses the deep pockets provided by Hezbollah to take control of major Lebanese institutions and, through them, bind the average Lebanese citizen to its war.
They accuse AQAH of using its control over these institutions to create a parallel economy and society, which allows them to further exploit the Lebanese.
By depositing money in AQAH, which also operates as an Islamic bank, account holders are depositing money directly into Hezbollah's coffers, the IDF claims.
AQAH also makes money for Hezbollah through its banking operations, which can provide Islamic (0% interest) loans for everything from buying a house to planning a marriage, with profits reinvested in the association.
The IDF says this money is then directly used to finance Hezbollah's campaign of terror against Israel through the purchase of weapons and missiles.
