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Perspectives: Lebanon and Hezbollah
April 26, 2019
Perspectives: Lebanon and
Hezbollah, is a UANI weekly resource
highlighting developments in Lebanon and the activities of the
terrorist group Hezbollah.
Hezbollah Internationally
Nasrallah Speech Denies Rumors of War with Israel this
Summer
Hezbollah
Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah gave a speech on Monday denying
reports that another war with Israel would occur this summer.
Nasrallah added that he did not believe Israel was ready for a war
with his group, claiming that its home front was not prepared for
conflict.
The war
rumors began with a report in Kuwait's
Al-Rai, which alleged that Nasrallah said he
expected Israel to launch a surprise war, with the assistance of the
U.S., U.K., and allied Arab states. Despite Nasrallah's denial, the
report's author stood by the veracity of his claims. In his speech, Nasrallah
also denied reports that Hezbollah - alongside Iranian fighters - had
clashed with Russian troops in Syria.
UNIFIL Confirms a Third Hezbollah Tunnel Crossed Blue
Line into Israel
The United
Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) confirmed on Thursday that a third
Hezbollah-dug tunnel crossed the Blue Line into Israeli territory.
The tunnel was first identified by the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) as
part of its Operation Northern Shield, launched in December 2018, and
begins in the southern Lebanese village of Ramyah.
U.S. Offers $10 Million to Disrupt Hezbollah's Global
Funding
The U.S.
State Department this week announced a reward of up to $10 million for actionable
information that would lead to the disruption of Hezbollah's
international funding streams. The reward was jointly announced by
Assistant Secretary of State for Diplomatic Security Michael T.
Evanoff, Assistant Secretary of the Treasury for Terrorist Financing
Marshall Billingslea, and Ambassador-at-Large and Coordinator for Counterterrorism
Nathan A. Sales. The reward is part of the State Department's Rewards for Justice program.
U.S. Sanctions Two Hezbollah-Linked Lebanese Men and
Three Entities
On Wednesday, the U.S. Treasury Department added two
Hezbollah-linked Lebanese men and three entities to its Specially
Designated Nationals (SDN) list. The two are Wael Bazzi and Hassan
Tabaja. The three entities are businesses linked to Bazzi -
U.K.-based BSQRD Limited, and Belgium-based Offiscoop NV and Voltra
Transcor Energy BVBA.
Wael Bazzi
was designated for acting on behalf of
his father Mohammad Bazzi, a known Hezbollah financier who was named
a Specially Designated Global Terrorist (SDGT) in May 2018 for
assisting Hezbollah. Since the elder Bazzi's designation, he has used
his son Wael as a way to continue conducting business on behalf of
the terrorist group.
Similarly,
Hassan Tabaja was designated for acting on behalf of his brother
Adham Tabaja - designated as an SDGT in June 2015 for providing
services and support to Hezbollah - including transacting with
designed Lebanese money launderer Mouhammad Noureddine.
PMF Commander Credits Hezbollah and Iran with Defending
Irbil Against ISIS
Jamal Jaafar
al-Ibrahimi - better known as Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis, the deputy
commander of Iraq's Kata'ib Hezbollah
and the Popular Mobilization Forces - praised Iran and Hezbollah this week
for helping to defend the Iraqi city of Irbil against ISIS.
Al-Muhandis said Iran and Hezbollah offered a great amount of help to
Iraq during the war against ISIS, crediting Tehran and its
Lebanon-based proxy with protecting the Kurdish Iraqi city.
Hezbollah Domestically
Lebanese Defense Minister Tours South Lebanon, Praises
Hezbollah
Lebanese
Defense Minister Elias Bou Saab visited south Lebanon on Wednesday
and inspected Lebanese Army barracks in the area. For part of the
visit, Bou Saab was accompanied by Hezbollah MP Hassan Fadlallah, who
credited "the resistance" and the
Lebanese Army for south Lebanon's safety and stability. Bou Saab also
praised Hezbollah, saying no one could deny the
sacrifices carried out by the "resistance" in defense of
Lebanon. He also said that Hezbollah's victories over Israel allowed
Lebanon to now "negotiate from a position of strength"
with its southern neighbor in territorial disputes. However, Bou Saab
added that the Lebanese Armed Forces
(LAF) alone should be tasked with national
defense, within the framework of a national defense strategy. To carry
out that task, however, the army had to be properly equipped and
supported by all of Lebanon, he said.
Lebanon Internationally
Berri: Lebanon Agrees to U.N.-Sponsored Demarcation of
Maritime Border with Israel
Lebanese
Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri met with United Nations Interim Force
Commander Stefano Del Col this week and informed him that Lebanon would
agree to a U.N.-sponsored demarcation of its maritime border with
Israel - including respective Exclusive Economic Zones - via the
mechanism used to demarcate the Blue Line.
The Blue Line
was established in May 2000 by the U.N.
to confirm the withdrawal of Israeli forces from Lebanon. While the
Blue Line de facto functions as the Israeli-Lebanese border,
it is not the official border between the two countries, as none
currently exists.
Lebanon Domestically
Berri: Lebanon Must Prepare to Pass New Electoral Law
Lebanese
Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri said Lebanon should begin preparations to pass a new
parliamentary electoral law, saying his parliamentary bloc - the
Development and Liberation bloc - was preparing a bill. Lebanon
adopted a new electoral law in 2017 that instituted a system of proportional
representation for the first time in the country's history. Berri
said that the 2017 law aroused complaints from the Lebanese citizenry
and should be replaced with a better law. Berri's envisioned
electoral scheme would maintain proportional representation, but
unlike the current law which divides Lebanon into 15 electoral
districts, would transform the country into one large electoral
district.
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