A top U.S. Treasury official urged Lebanese authorities Monday to crack down on funding for Hezbollah ahead of next year’s parliamentary elections and to prosecute those involved with a Hezbollah-linked quasi-bank.
According to The Associated Press, under Secretary for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence John K. Hurley, visiting Beirut with Treasury and National Security Council officials, said the U.S. believes Hezbollah aims to bring $1 billion into Lebanon by year’s end, though “exactly how many dollars they have brought in, we don’t know.”
Hurley acknowledged progress by Lebanese authorities but emphasized the need for more action. “We were very frank with the president, the prime minister and the other senior officials that there’s a window right now, particularly the window between now and the election,” he said.
Lebanon’s parliamentary election is scheduled for May 2026, though some officials are debating a delay due to voting system concerns for the diaspora. Hezbollah and its allies performed strongly in municipal elections earlier this year, aiming to translate those gains into the parliamentary vote.
Hurley said funds for Hezbollah continue to enter Lebanon in cash and gold, and via cryptocurrency, with transit points including the United Arab Emirates and Turkey. He added, “We’re confident that somewhere there are banks that are either knowingly or unknowingly facilitating getting money into the country.” He singled out exchange houses as “a major part of the problem.”
The U.S. has also pushed Lebanon to act against al-Qard al-Hasan, a Hezbollah-affiliated nonprofit that operates like a quasi-bank. “There should be prosecutions of people who are violating Lebanese law, who are violating sanctions, using that entity to fund Hezbollah,” Hurley said.
Hezbollah, which operates schools, hospitals, and stores, has continued to resist disarmament, with Israeli airstrikes ongoing in southern Lebanon. International reconstruction funding for the war-battered region remains on hold until the group relinquishes its weapons.
