BEIRUT: Lebanon’s President Joseph Aoun told US officials on Sunday his country was tackling money laundering and the financing of terrorism, days after Washington imposed sanctions on three Hezbollah members.
The trio were accused of money laundering to fund Lebanon’s Hezbollah militant group, designated a terrorist organization by the United States and other Western powers.
The US delegation’s visit to Beirut, headed by senior director for counterterrorism Sebastian Gorka, came as Washington works to cut off Iran-backed Hezbollah’s funding and Lebanon’s government tries to disarm it.
The group was severely weakened in its most recent war with Israel, which was halted by a November 2024 ceasefire.
“Lebanon strictly applies the measures adopted to prevent money laundering, smuggling, or its use in financing terrorism, and severely punishes financial crimes of all kinds,” Aoun said he had told the delegation.
