July 29, 2017 photo, a Hezbollah fighter stands at a watchtower at the site where clashes erupted between Hezbollah and al-Qaida-linked fighters in Wadi al-Kheil or al-Kheil Valley in the Lebanon-Syria border. (AP Photo/Bilal Hussein)
On October 12, the U.S. Senate passed the Hezbollah International Financing Prevention Amendments Act (HIFPAA) and the Stop Using Human Shields Act, known as (STOP), which increase the sanctions on Lebanese Hezbollah and its backers.
Once signed by U.S. President Donald Trump, the two bills will sanction individuals, entities and countries that provide financial, material or technological support to Hezbollah and its affiliates. According to reports, the sanctions will also target several organizations linked to Hezbollah such as Bayt al Mal, the Islamic Resistance Support Association, Jihad al Binaa, al-Manar TV, al-Nour Radio, and the Lebanese Media Group.
The Senate Banking Committee, headed by Senator Mike Crapo, said that the new bills will help to strengthens and expand the scope of economic and financial sanctions on Hezbollah.
“This legislation … imposes additional sanctions on Hezbollah, and targets those foreign nations, government agencies and foreign companies or individuals who would support its terrorist activities by knowingly providing arms, recruitment services and combat or financial support to its terrorist activities. It is long overdue, and constant vigilance must be maintained if we are ever to see an end to the evil this terrorist group brings,” Crapo said in an official statement.
Earlier this year, the U.S. imposed similar sanctions on Hezbollah, in what was seen as an attempt to force the Lebanese group to withdraw from Syria. However, the group leader, Hassan Nasrallah, said that these sanctions are ineffective and revealed that Hezbollah “receives its money the way it receives its weapons.”
