U.S. Hits Suspected Hizbullah Agents in W. Africa with Sanctions

The United States announced sanctions against four Lebanese supporters of Hizbullah on Tuesday, alleging they were working to extend the group's influence in West Africa.

The U.S. Treasury Department named the four as responsible for Hizbullah's activities in Sierra Leone, Senegal, Ivory Coast and Gambia: Ali Ibrahim al-Watfa, Abbas Loutfe Fawaz, Ali Ahmad Chehade, and Hicham Nmer Khanafer, respectively.

The operatives "have organized fund-raising efforts, recruited members, and in some cases styled themselves as ambassadors of Hizbullah's Foreign Relations Department," the Treasury said in a statement.

The sanctions freeze any assets they have on U.S. soil and ban Americans and U.S. businesses from any transactions with them.

The United States has designated Hizbullah as a “terrorist group.”

"Today's designations... further expose the alarming reach of Hizbullah's activities and its determination to create a worldwide funding and recruitment network to support its violence and criminal enterprises around the world," the department said.

"Even as Hizbullah claims to be a resistance organization, its expansive global network is sending money and operatives to carry out terrorist attacks around the world and fighters to the front lines of the Syrian civil war."

David Cohen, the Treasury's under secretary for terrorism and financial intelligence, vowed to use "all tools at our disposal" to disrupt Hizbullah's efforts to extend its influence beyond the borders of Lebanon.

"These actions are increasingly important as the funding from Hizbullah's traditional patron, Iran, is squeezed by international sanctions," Cohen said.