Report: Washington Urges Lebanon Banks to Remove Violations

The brief visit of US Treasury Assistant Secretary for Terrorist Financing Marshall Billingslea to Beirut, comes as part of “Washington's inclusion of Lebanon on the list of countries subject to its strict control,” the Saudi Asharq al-Awsat reported on Wednesday.

Billingslea’s visit came to closely follow up on the US sanctions on Hizbullah, being the military and political arm of Iran, and to get the latest updates on the liquidation of Lebanon’s Jammal Trust Bank, sanctioned by the US for funding Hizbullah, said the daily.

Ministerial and bank officials told Asharq al-Awsat that Bellingslea has warned Hizbullah’s allies of violating US sanctions, or providing any kind of support for Hizbullah.

The sources said Bellingslea was satisfied with the measures taken by Central Bank Governor Riad Salameh in liquidating JTB, and that he did not name any new Lebanese banks that could be subject to US sanctions as reports claim.

The US official was very “strict” said the sources “when stressing the need that Lebanese banks should avoid opening any accounts linked to Hizbullah.”

He was “very keen on preserving the banking sector in Lebanon and supporting the economic stability,” said the sources, noting that he “praised the cooperation with the Association of Banks in Lebanon, as well as Banque du Liban (BDL), to combat terrorism, money laundering and the drying up of financial assets of Iran and its allies in the region.”

“Even if we assume that banks committed irregularities and mistakes in opening accounts for the party, we do not mind to initiate a clean-up,” Bellingslea was reported as saying.