Pompeo Comments on U.S. Sanctions on Khalil, Fenianos
US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo commented on the US administration’s decision to impose sanctions on former Lebanese ministers Youssef Fenianos and Ali Hassan Khalil.
“We stand with the Lebanese people’s call for reform and will promote accountability for anyone facilitating Hizbullah’s terrorist agenda. Today the U.S. is designating two corrupt former Lebanese ministers who abused their positions to provide material support to Hizbullah,” said Pompeo in tweet on Wednesday.
The United States on Tuesday slapped sanctions on the two ministers for alleged corruption and support of Hizbullah in a rare move against politicians close to the Iran-backed group.
The sanctioned officials are former finance minister Ali Hassan Khalil and former public works and transportation minister Youssef Fenianos. Khalil is currently a member of the Lebanese Parliament.
The sanctions appear to be a strong message to politicians in the country, which is experiencing its worst economic and financial crisis in decades. It is also a strong warning to Hizullah and its allies who control majority seats in Parliament that the sanctions could target more politicians.
Khalil is a senior official with the Shiite Amal group that is headed by Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri while Fenianos is a member of the Christian Marada group that is allied with Hizbullah and the Syrian government.
The U.S. Treasury said Khalil and Fenianos “provided material support to Hizbullah and engaged in corruption.”
U.S. officials have been warning that a new wave of sanctions will target allies of Hizbullah, which is considered a terrorist organization by Washington.
Hizbullah used its relationship with officials in the Lebanese government, including Fenianos as minister, to siphon funds from government budgets to ensure that Hizbullah-owned companies won bids for Lebanese government contracts worth millions of dollars, the U.S. Treasury said.
It added that Finianos also helped Hizbullah gain access to sensitive legal documents related to the Special Tribunal for Lebanon and served as a go-between for Hizbullah and political allies. The Special Tribunal for Lebanon last month convicted a Hizbullah member in the 2005 assassination of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri.
It added that Khalil used his position as finance minister to attempt to have U.S. financial restrictions on Hizbullah eased so that the group would have less difficulty moving money.
The Treasury said the designations underscore how some Lebanese politicians have conspired with Hizbullah at the expense of the Lebanese people and institutions. The U.S. supports the Lebanese people in their calls for a transparent and accountable government free of corruption, it added.
Source: Naharnet, Associated Press
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