Washington, DC - The U.S. Department of State's Rewards for Justice Program is offering a reward of up to $10 million for information leading to the disruption of the financial mechanisms of the global terrorist organization Lebanese Hizballah. This announcement marks the first time that the Department has offered a reward for information on Hizballah’s global financial networks.
Rewards can be provided for information leading to the identification and disruption of:
- a source of revenue for Hizballah or its key financial facilitation mechanisms;
- major Hizballah donors or financial facilitators;
- financial institutions or exchange houses facilitating Hizballah transactions;
- businesses or investments owned or controlled by Hizballah or its financiers;
- front companies engaged in international procurement of dual-use technology on behalf of Hizballah; and
- criminal schemes involving Hizballah members and supporters which financially benefit the organization.
Hizballah is a Lebanon-based terrorist organization that receives weapons, training, and funding from Iran, which the Secretary of State designated as a state sponsor of terrorism in 1984. Hizballah generates about a billion dollars a year from a combination of direct financial support from Iran, international businesses and investments, donor networks, and money laundering activities. The State Department designated Hizballah as a Foreign Terrorist Organization (FTO) in October 1997 under the Immigration and Nationality Act, and as a Specially Designated Global Terrorist (SDGT) in October 2001 under Executive Order (E.O.) 13224.
In addition to Hizballah’s global financial networks, the State Department is highlighting the following three individuals as examples of the type of key Hizballah financiers or facilitators about whom it seeks information. All three have been designated by the U.S. Department of the Treasury as SDGTs:
Adham Tabaja is a Hizballah member who maintains direct ties to senior Hizballah organizational elements, including the group’s operational component, Islamic Jihad. Tabaja also holds properties in Lebanon on behalf of the group and conducts business throughout the Middle East and West Africa. He is majority owner of the Lebanon-based real estate development and construction firm Al-Inmaa Group for Tourism Works. The Treasury Department designated Tabaja, Al-Inmaa Group for Tourism Works, and its subsidiaries as SDGTs in June 2015.
Mohammad Ibrahim Bazzi is a key Hizballah financier who has provided millions of dollars to Hizballah generated from his business activities in Europe, the Middle East, and Africa. He owns or controls Global Trading Group NV, Euro African Group LTD, Africa Middle East Investment Holding SAL, Premier Investment Group SAL Offshore, and Car Escort Services S.A.L. Off Shore. The Treasury Department designated Bazzi and his affiliated companies as SDGTs in May 2018.
Ali Youssef Charara is a key Hizballah financier as well as Chairman and General Manager of Lebanon-based telecommunications company Spectrum Investment Group Holding SAL, and has extensive business interests in the telecommunications industry in West Africa. Charara has received millions of dollars from Hizballah to invest in commercial projects that financially support the terrorist group. The Treasury Department designated Charara and Spectrum Investment Group as SDGTs in January 2016.
More information about these reward offers is located on the Rewards for Justice website at www.rewardsforjustice.net.
