US puts Hizballah MPs in Lebanon on sanctions blacklist for first time

The US Treasury placed two Hizballah members of Lebanon's parliament on its sanctions blacklist on Tuesday.

1 min read

09 July, 2019

Washington considers Hizballah, which was created by Iran in the 1980s, a terrorist organization [Getty]

The US Treasury placed two Hizballah members of Lebanon's parliament on its sanctions blacklist on Tuesday - the first time Washington has taken aim at the Iran-allied group's elected politicians.

The Treasury named MPs Amin Sherri and Muhammad Hasan Ra'd to a terror-related blacklist, saying that Hizballah uses its parliamentary power to advance its alleged violent activities.

Also placed on the blacklist was Wafiq Safa, a top Hizballah security official.

"Hezbollah uses its operatives in Lebanon's parliament to manipulate institutions in support of the terrorist group's financial and security interests, and to bolster Iran's malign activities," said Sigal Mandelker, Under Secretary of Treasury for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence.

Washington considers Hizballah, which was created by Iran in the early 1980s, a terrorist organization.

The group has been blamed for attacks in France, Lebanon and Bulgaria, and is one of the main allies of Syria's regime against the country's rebels.

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