Iran Is Funding Hezbollah via Suitcases Stuffed With Cash, Israel Warns @WSJ Israel is accusing Iranian diplomats and others of smuggling tens of millions of U.S. dollars stuffed into suitcases through the Beirut airport to militant group Hezbollah, a U.S. defense official and people familiar with the matter said. Israel has lodged complaints with the U.S.-led committee overseeing a cease-firethat has halted fighting in Lebanon, saying that in addition to the Iranian envoys, Turkish citizens have flown from Istanbul to Beirut with cash for the U.S.-designated terrorist organization. Cash shipments from Iran to Hezbollah could deepen friction between Israel and the two Shia allies. In two months of fierce fighting last autumn, Israel wiped out most of Hezbollah’s top leaders, killed or injured many of its militants and significantly degraded its arsenal of missiles. Israel has targeted Hezbollah’s sources of cash to hamper its ability to fight and slow its recovery. Over the past year, Israel killed central figures in Hezbollah and Iran who were responsible for keeping funds flowing to the Lebanese militia. A person familiar with Hezbollah’s thinking said the group wasn’t experiencing a liquidity crisis and was paying compensation for badly damaged property that ranges from $12,000 to $14,000 a year for rent, along with extra payments for furniture. Since the cease-fire came into effect in late November, Al-Qard al-Hassan has reopened 28 branches, and Hezbollah has used the bank to issue $500 million worth of checks—a sign the person said showed that the group doesn’t have a cash flow problem. https://www.wsj.com/world/middle-east/iran-hezbollah-financing-lebanon-airport-f9e40343?page=1
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