US sanctions gold exchange firm, individuals and entities over alleged Hezbollah ties

The U.S. Department of the Treasury said Tuesday that it "took action to disrupt two key mechanisms Hezbollah uses to sustain its economic stability: revenue generation in coordination with the Iranian regime and exploitation of Lebanon’s informal financial sector."

The Department said it sanctioned the Lebanon-based gold exchange company Jood SARL, noting that it "operates under the supervision of Hezbollah’s U.S.-designated Al-Qard Al-Hassan (AQAH), and converts Hezbalollah’s gold reserves into usable funds that sustain the terrorist group’s reconstitution."

It also sanctioned "an international procurement and commodities shipping scheme orchestrated by Hezbollah financiers operating from all over the region, including in Iran."

“Hezbollah is a threat to peace and stability in the Middle East,” said Secretary of the Treasury Scott Bessent. “Treasury will work to cut these terrorists off from the global financial system to give Lebanon a chance to be peaceful and prosperous again," he added.

The Treasury pointed out that "senior Al-Qard Al-Hassan officials established a chain of companies to trade gold in Lebanon and potentially overseas." Hizballah officials pushed for Al-Qard

"To evade sanctions, Al-Qard Al-Hassan officials established Lebanese government-licensed Jood SARL (Jood), overseen by U.S.-designated Samer Hasan Fawaz. Al-Qard Al-Hassan has opened or plans to open Jood branches in predominantly Shiite areas, including Beirut, the Bek’a valley, and Nabatiyeh. Al-Qard Al-Hassan supervises the activities of Jood, and most Jood branches are located in or near existing Al-Qard Al-Hassan branches. Senior AQAH officials Mohamed Nayef Maged and U.S.-designated Ali Karnib are co-owners and managing partners of Jood, and they operate the company on behalf of Al-Qard Al-Hassan," the Treasury alleged.

It also said that U.S.-designated, Iran-based Hezbollah "finance team member Ali Qasir" regularly coordinates with a cohort of associates across several jurisdictions to evade sanctions and raise money for Hezbollah.

"As of mid-2025, Moscow-based Russian national Andrey Viktorovich Borisov (Borisov), an employee of U.S.-designated Hizballah-affiliated company Mira Ihracat Ithalat Petrol (Mira), worked directly with Ali Qasir on projects including procuring weapons from Russia and selling commodities to generate revenue," the Treasury said.

"Since at least 2021, Borisov has worked directly with U.S.-designated Hezbollah finance team associates Ibrahim Talal al-Uwayr and Muhammad Amir Alchwiki on facilitating matters related to Mira’s business deals involving Russia," it added.