Saudi Arabia and the United States Thursday imposed sanctions on alleged Hezbollah members and financial backers, accusing them of funneling money to the Lebanese militant group or engaging in terrorism. Saudi Arabia designated two individuals Hasan Hatem Jamal Al-Din, Mohamed Al-Mohtar Falah Kallas and Global Cleaners under a local counterterrorism law, freezing their assets and prohibiting any commercial licenses for the men in the Kingdom. The US Treasury Department said it targeted four individuals and one company, effectively freezing their US assets and blocking any transactions with them. In a related action, the US State Department also blacklisted alleged Hezbollah commander Haytham Ali Tabatabai, alias Abu Ali Al-Tabatabai, the Treasury Department said in a statement. The State Department declared Hezbollah a terrorist organization in 1997 and long-standing US efforts have sought to disrupt the organization's funding. Founded in the 1980s in Lebanon, the Shiite militant organization and political party has provided military support to President Bashar Al-Assad in the Syrian conflict, and American officials blame it for attacks stretching back to the 1980s. "Hezbollah continues to plan, coordinate and execute terrorist attacks around the world, and Treasury will continue to aggressively target Hezbollah and those supporting its terrorist activities," Adam Szubin, acting Treasury under-secretary for terrorism and financial intelligence, said in a statement.
