The U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) has issued guidance to aid financial institutions in identifying transactions that may involve funding the Hezbollah terrorist organization.
“Hezbollah’s role in the ongoing conflict in the Middle East has exacerbated the risk of a wider regional war, and its strikes on Israeli territory have displaced thousands and killed innocent civilians,” FinCEN director Andrea Gacki said on Wednesday.
“As part of the Treasury Department’s enduring campaign against Hezbollah’s finances and in response to Hezbollah’s attacks against Israel, we are issuing this alert to help financial institutions uncover Hezbollah’s illicit activities and protect the U.S. financial system from abuse by terrorists,” she said.
Treasury notes Hezbollah’s involvement in oil, gas, gold, currency exchanges, real estate, high-value art, construction and import-export businesses. Its money-laundering efforts focus on Europe, West Africa and South America.
Hezbollah has shown particular interest in “the tri-border area of Argentina, Brazil and Paraguay, as well as in free trade zones in Panama, to generate revenue for the organization through both licit and illicit activities,” according to Treasury. These plans often coordinate with drug cartels and organized crime groups.
The alert concludes with identifying seven red flags for banks to identify in countering Hezbollah’s criminal transactions. These include activity involving those identified on lists of sanctioned companies or banks named as a “primary money-laundering concern.”
