Iran and its allies try to hide their terrorist programs with supposedly civilian activities, and on Sunday Israel struck again against that effort by blacklisting three Lebanese companies. Israeli Defense Minister Benny Gantz, according to an Israeli press release, signed a seizure order for the companies due to their ties to Hezbollah’s precision missile project, which will “will allow the companies to be blacklisted in the world’s financial systems and will make it very difficult for them to continue operating.”
The move—part of the broader effort to “tighten economic pressure on the precision [missile] project in Lebanon”—comes as Iranian aggression in the region escalates and as Hezbollah continues to build up a terrifying arsenal of missiles. It also follows a pattern of Iranian allies spending key resources on threatening Israel and others rather than economically supporting their own civilians.
“Instead of helping and rehabilitating the citizens of Lebanon—Hezbollah continues to endanger the citizens of Lebanon and the entire country and sow chaos,” said Gantz in Sunday’s press release. “Hezbollah, with Iran’s support, is undermining the ability to stabilize Lebanon.”
Gantz said that Israel, by contrast, “will continue to reach out to the Lebanese people and offer humanitarian aid, while at the same time continuing to undermine attempts to introduce advanced weapons that will endanger its citizens, with an emphasis on promoting the Iranian precision project that works from the heart of Lebanon.”
Precision missiles would enable Hezbollah to more accurately strike Israeli targets than the weapons used in the Second Lebanon War in 2006, potentially hitting more sensitive Israeli sites or harming more Israeli civilians.
Israel’s sanctions announced on Sunday targeted the Toufali, Moubayed and Barakat companies, who the press release noted “trade in machines, oils and ventilation systems that are required for Hezbollah’s production line and the precision project in particular.”
The move is “part of a joint operation” by Israel Military Intelligence and the National Bureau for Counter Terror financing of Israel (NBCTF) at the Ministry of Defense. A similar seizure order was announced last August against another Lebanese company.
(By Joshua Spurlock, www.themideastupdate.com, February 6, 2022)