Mohammad Hadouane and Ali Chaer, two alleged Hezbollah financiers, appear in this image relayed by the US State Department's "Rewards for Justice" program. (Credit: Twitter/@Rewards4Justice)
BEIRUT — The US State Department announced on Monday that it is offering a financial reward of up to $10 million for information about two alleged financiers of Hezbollah, which the United States has designated a terrorist group.
Here’s what we know:
• On its “Rewards for Justice” twitter account in Arabic, the US State Department accused Mohammad Hadowane and Ali Chaer of being “in charge of Hezbollah finances internationally.” The first is described as “a senior official of the general secretariat” of the party, while the second is indicated to be its chief of staff.
• The US Treasury regularly imposes sanctions against Lebanese accused of being linked to Hezbollah and of financing its activities. Less than a month ago, the US Treasury Department sanctioned an “international oil smuggling and money laundering ring” it said was led by Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps’ elite al-Quds brigade and “facilitating the sale of hundreds of millions of dollars of Iranian oil for the al-Quds brigade and Hezbollah” in Lebanon.