UK, US sanction art dealer with suspected ties to Hezbollah

A diamond and art dealer was sanctioned Tuesday by the UK and U.S. governments for allegedly funding Lebanon's Hezbollah group.

The UK Treasury said it froze Nazem Ahmad's assets in the UK because he financed Hezbollah. Under the sanctions, no one in the UK or U.S. will be able to do business with Ahmad or his businesses.

“The firm action we have taken today will clamp down on those who are funding international terrorism,” said Joanna Penn, UK treasury minister. She said the move would strengthen the UK's economic and national security.

Ahmad was similarly sanctioned in 2019 by the US Treasury, which alleged he was a “prominent Lebanon-based money launderer and significant Hezbollah financier.” It also said he was involved in smuggling “blood diamonds," which are mined in conflict zones and sold to finance violence.

The U.S. Treasury Department on Tuesday afternoon sanctioned a network of 52 individuals and entities from Lebanon to South Africa to the United Kingdom to Hong Kong for their associations with Ahmad.

The sanctioned group is accused of running an international money laundering and sanctions evasion operation, facilitating the payment and delivery of jewelry, art and luxury goods for the benefit of Ahmad, according to Treasury.

Included in the sanctions announcement are Ahmad’s children, wife, extended family members, business associates, real estate firms and several diamond companies based in South Africa, Belgium and Dubai, which acted as brokers for jewelry and art sales.

U.S. Treasury’s Under Secretary for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence Brian E. Nelson said individuals involved in the luxury goods trade “should be attentive to these potential tactics and schemes, which allow terrorist financiers, money launderers, and sanctions evaders to launder illicit proceeds through the purchase and consignment of luxury goods.”

Rewards for Justice — the U.S. State Department’s national security rewards program — is offering a reward of up to $10 million for information related to Ahmad.

A Beirut art gallery the UK government identified as belonging to Ahmad did not immediately reply to an Associated Press email seeking comment.