New Delhi: Israel has started bombing the Lebanese branches of an association that is accused of financing the Hezbollah movement.
On Sunday (October 20), Israel’s military announced that it is taking aim at the Lebanon-based al-Qard al-Hassan “all over Lebanon”, reported France 24.
Al-Qard al-Hassan is a Hezbollah unit that’s used to pay operatives of the militant group and help buy arms, said an Israeli official.
Al-Qard al-Hassan is a registered nonprofit in the US and Saudi Arabia which also provides financial services to the ordinary Lebanese people. In recent years, the Hezbollah has used the organisation to mobilise support among the Shiite population of Lebanon were many state and financial organisations have failed over the years.
Meanwhile, the US military has rushed its advanced anti-missile system to Israel and it is now “in place”, said US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin.
Late on Sunday (October 20), Israeli strikes hit several branches of the financial institution linked to Hezbollah in Beirut, Lebanon’s south and the Bekaa Valley, but no casualties were immediately reported.
Sources said that US envoy Amos Hochstein will be in Beirut on Monday (October 21) to hold talks about a ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah.
Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah was killed in an Israeli strike last month. Nasrallah was largely responsible for expanding Hezbollah, or Party of God, from a guerrilla faction into Lebanon’s most powerful political force.
Nasrallah led Hezbollah through decades of conflict with Israel, overseeing its transformation into a military force with regional sway and becoming one of the most prominent Arab figures in generations – with Iranian backing.
