US sanctions Hezbollah's Iran-linked 'cash network'
The United States Treasury on Thursday imposed sanctions on a network of alleged Hezbollah financiers it says channelled tens of millions of dollars from Iran into Lebanon this year.
The United States Treasury on Thursday imposed sanctions on a network of alleged Hezbollah financiers it says channelled tens of millions of dollars from Iran into Lebanon this year.
The individuals helped move Iranian funds through both licensed and unlicensed exchange companies, the Treasury said, allowing Hezbollah to rebuild its military infrastructure and sustain its paramilitary units.
“Lebanon has an opportunity to be free, prosperous, and secure, but that can only happen if Hizballah is fully disarmed and cut off from Iran’s funding and control,” said John K. Hurley, the US undersecretary for terrorism and financial intelligence, in a statement.
Efforts to curb Hezbollah’s military power have intensified but borne little fruit since a ceasefire with Israel in June 2024.
The Lebanese group argues that its weapons are needed to defend the country’s from Israel, but rival factions in Lebanon’s fragmented political landscape say the group undermines the state and serves Tehran’s interests.
This message was delivered by Iran's President Joseph Aoun directly to Iran’s security chief, Ali Larijani, during his visit to Lebanon in late September.
Larijani rejected accusations of interference, saying those pushing for disarmament, not Tehran, were meddling in Lebanese affairs.
‘Cash network’
The latest measures target Hezbollah operatives who, according to US officials, oversee the influx of Iranian money generated through covert dealings which contravene US sanctions, including the sale of oil and other goods.
According to the Treasury, the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps–Quds Force has transferred more than $1bn to Hezbollah since January 2025.
Among those sanctioned is Ossama Jaber, a Hezbollah member accused of collecting and converting tens of millions of dollars between September 2024 and February 2025.
Washington also moved against figures linked to Hezbollah’s finance team, whose structure has been in flux since the death last year of its long-time chief, Muhammad Qasir, and the collapse of Bashar al-Assad’s regime in Syria — a key financial bridge to Iran for decades.
Qasir’s responsibilities were split among several relatives and associates, including his son Ja’far and nephew Ali, both of whom have already been sanctioned by the US.
Hezbollah has been listed by the US as a foreign terrorist organization since 1997.
"Negotiation is a fundamental tool for securing national interests and security. There are two ways to achieve your aims: war or negotiation. And negotiation is, of course, the less costly option," Abbas Araghchi told students at a speech in Hamedan in Western Iran.
"That said, we should not be afraid of war or of fighting; if we are afraid, war will be imposed on us," he added. "The best way to deter war is to be prepared for it."
A 12-day conflict launched by Israel in June killed hundreds of Iranian military personnel and civilians and was capped off by US strikes on three nuclear sites. Iranian counterattacks killed 32 Israeli civilians and an off-duty soldier.
Still, the impasse over Iran's disputed nuclear program persists. Tehran denies seeking a bomb but Western powers and Israel doubt its intentions.
European countries and the United States have called for renewed talks between Washington and Tehran, but Iran says it will not renounce domestic uranium enrichment or discuss its missile program and its support for regional armed groups.
Iran, Aragchi added, had “tested negotiations with the United States in different circumstances and never achieved positive results.”
Referring to a 2015 nuclear deal, he said, “America unilaterally withdrew and reinstated sanctions.”
Araghchi said Iran’s foreign policy rests on independence from both East and West. “We do not trust any country,” he said. “However, we have strategic partnerships with some, including China and Russia, and continue our cooperation within that framework.”
Turning to nuclear policy, he reaffirmed Iran’s continued adherence to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, citing a religious decree prohibiting nuclear weapons.
Under the Criminal Code Amendment (State Sponsors of Terrorism) Act 2025, the government may now designate a foreign state entity that “has engaged in, or otherwise supported or advocated for, the doing of terrorist acts targeted at Australia.”
The Criminal Code will also be expanded with new offences aimed at state sponsors of terrorism, their proxies and external supporters.
Attorney-General Michelle Rowland said the legislation reflects Australia’s uncompromising stance on threats to its national security.
“Our first priority is the safety and protection of all Australians, which is why we have acted decisively in passing this vital legislation through the Parliament,” she said.
She added that the law “is a warning that foreign states and their supporters who seek to fuel division, create fear, erode social cohesion and perpetrate violence in the Australian community will be held to account.”
The legislation follows a hot-line press conference in August where Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, flanked by Australia’s domestic spy chief, publicly said the IRGC orchestrated two arson attacks on a kosher restaurant in Sydney and a synagogue in Melbourne in 2024.
Australian domestic spy agency Australian Security Intelligence Organization (ASIO) assessed that the IRGC used a “complex web of proxies” to carry out attacks on Australian soil.
Rowland said the new law would create an environment where “it is more difficult, more risky, and more costly for malicious foreign actors to seek to cause Australia and our community harm.”
She added that law enforcement and intelligence agencies would be given enhanced powers to investigate and disrupt state-sponsored terrorism.
While the IRGC has been designated a terrorist organization by the United States since 2019, Australia’s new law marks the first time Canberra has enabled the listing of a foreign state entity under its federal terrorism framework.
Parliamentary sources said the government’s intelligence case was bolstered by “credible intelligence” linking the IRGC to extremist actions in Australia.
Foreign Minister Penny Wong described the law as part of broader efforts to protect democratic institutions from overseas interference.
“Foreign state-sponsored extremism does not stop at our border,” she said, adding that the legislation would help safeguard Australia’s “social cohesion and national resilience.”
Tehran dismissed the Sydney and Melbourne attacks allegations as “fabricated aims to undermine Iran.”
Australia’s Parliament passed the bill through the Senate without amendment. Legal analysts said the framework enables Canberra to impose economic and operational restrictions on listed entities and prosecute those who provide material support. The law also allows asset freezes and bans on directors or associates of designated state-sponsor entities.