Israel’s military operation against the Iranian-backed Lebanese group Hezbollah focused on a new target this week: financial infrastructure.
Israel carried out airstrikes on Sunday in Beirut and elsewhere in Lebanon, targeting branches of Al-Qad al-Hassan Association (AQAH), a Hezbollah-linked financial institution and de facto bank.
On Monday, Israeli Defense Forces spokesman Daniel Hagari made a number of claims regarding Hezbollah’s funding and reasons for the attack in a video message posted online.
He said Hezbollah was exploiting Lebanon’s “severe financial crisis” in recent years for its own benefit, and that its financial network had two main sources of income: funds from Iran and funds from Lebanese citizens. claimed to be based on.
He said Israeli attacks targeted various locations linked to al-Qad al-Hassan, but without evidence that Hezbollah had stolen “hundreds of millions of dollars” in a bunker beneath a hospital in central Beirut. He also claimed to be keeping the .
Who is Alucard Al Hassan?
David Usher has been advising the U.S. government on money laundering and terrorist financing for many years, and was involved in previous U.S. government campaigns targeting Hezbollah financing. He told DW that Al Qard Al Hassan is “not a bank in the traditional sense, but a savings and loan association.”
Jonathan Lord, director of the Middle East security program at the Center for a New American Security, a think tank, said al-Qaad al-Hassan plays a key role for Hezbollah in Lebanon.
“They provide financial services,” Lord told DW. “For Hezbollah in Lebanon, this has become a bit of a strategic competitive advantage.The traditional banking sector has been very plagued by corruption and widespread banking and economic woes in Lebanon, especially in recent years. , because it is extremely difficult.”
Hezbollah is one of the most organized militias in the Middle East. Image: Courtney Bonneau/Middle East Images/picture Alliance
Al-Qard Al-Hassan was founded in 1983 and is estimated to have around 30 branches. It is popular in areas where support for Hezbollah has traditionally been strongest. But since the partial collapse of Lebanon’s mainstream banking system as part of the wider financial crisis that hit the country in 2019, al-Qaad al-Hassan has become even more popular.
It is not regulated by the Lebanese Central Bank or any part of the international banking system. It has been under US sanctions since 2007.
Where does Hezbollah get its money from?
Daniel Hagari said in a video message that Hezbollah receives its funding from two main sources: Iran and the Lebanese people through financial and social services provided through Al-Qad Al-Hassan.
“It’s very difficult to target Al-Qad Al-Hassan alone, because that’s only one part of the equation,” David Asher said. He said a major part of al-Qaad al-Hassan’s mission against Hezbollah is to pay “ordinary” members and provide various forms of social and financial services to the population.
He stressed that Hezbollah also takes advantage of Lebanon’s mainstream banking system and that its wealth is distributed in various ways. He personally estimates that Hezbollah’s annual budget is “$12 billion to $15 billion (€11 billion to €13.9 billion) per year.”
Regarding Israel’s claim that much of Hezbollah’s wealth comes from Iran, Jonathan Lord said this cannot be denied and that Hezbollah literally exists as a division of the Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps. “If you look at Iran’s order of battle, Iran counts Hezbollah as part of its defense infrastructure,” he said, adding that this would allow Iran to directly fund Lebanon with funds brought to its embassy in Lebanon. He added that Israel’s claims that the
How does Hezbollah secure power in Lebanon?
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Asher pointed out that Hezbollah’s other huge source of wealth is the proceeds of crimes such as drug trafficking and the blood diamond trade. He said there is extensive evidence that Hezbollah raises money through criminal networks around the world and launders much of that money through ostensibly legitimate companies, often in Europe. .
He estimates that Iran provides up to half of Hezbollah’s reserves, with much of the remaining 50% coming from the proceeds of illegal crimes around the world.
How will all this affect the Lebanese economy?
Lebanon’s economic situation has been consistently described by experts as catastrophic since 2019. Sanctions against Iran triggered a severe liquidity crisis in Lebanon that year, which was further exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic and the 2020 Beirut port explosion.
The country’s currency and banking system collapsed, as did many of its public services. GDP has been almost halved. Bombings have forced the evacuation of up to one million people in recent weeks, about 20% of the country’s total population.
Israel’s devastating bombing campaign has dramatically worsened the humanitarian situation in Lebanon Image: Bilal Hussein/AP/picture Alliance
Will Israel’s plan work?
Jonathan Lord said Israel’s goal of targeting Hezbollah’s financial infrastructure suggests a “different mindset” than previous operations. But while it is clear that Israel is inflicting significant damage on Hezbollah, he added that there is a real risk of “mission creep” in which Lebanon’s fight against Hezbollah “becomes Israel’s Vietnam.”
David Asher believes that this week’s Israeli attacks on sites associated with al-Qaad al-Hassan and Hezbollah’s financial structures have resulted in “about 30% to 40% of Hezbollah’s fungible cash being drained.” are.
At the same time, Hezbollah still has significant wealth tied up in Lebanon’s mainstream financial system, and Israel’s current approach has the potential to “impact the revenue sources that Hezbollah continues to derive from various illegal criminal enterprises in and around Iran.” He also claimed that his gender is low. world. “
Editor: Uwe Hessler
