US Sanctions Nine Hezbollah-Linked Lebanese Officials for Blocking Disarmament

WASHINGTON, May 21, 2026 — The U.S. Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control added nine Hezbollah-aligned Lebanese officials to the Specially Designated Nationals list on May 21, 2026, for obstructing Lebanon’s peace process and disarmament efforts.

The individuals are Ibrahim al-Moussawi, Ahmad Asaad Baalabaki, Hassan Nizammeddine Fadlallah, Abdel-Mottaleb Mohamed Fanich, Samir Adnan Hamadi, Hussein al-Hajj Hassan, Khattar Nasser Eldin, Ali Ahmad Safawi and Mohammad Reza Raouf Sheibani. All nine are linked to Hezbollah and hold or have held positions in Lebanon’s parliament, military or security apparatus, per the OFAC notice.

The designations were made pursuant to Executive Order 13224, as amended by Executive Order 13886. They take immediate effect. The nine now face full property blocking under U.S. jurisdiction. Any U.S. person or company is prohibited from engaging in virtually any transaction with them.

Non-U.S. persons risk secondary sanctions if they provide material support, per the Hizballah Financial Sanctions Regulations.

The action directly implements U.S. policy to disarm Hezbollah and advance a stable Lebanese government free of Iranian-backed militia control. Banks, companies and foreign governments that maintain relationships with the designated officials must now freeze accounts, terminate contracts and cease dealings or face U.S. penalties.

Lebanese institutions that previously operated in legal gray areas with these individuals lose that flexibility.

This is the latest in a series of OFAC actions targeting Hezbollah’s political and financial enablers inside Lebanese state institutions. The May 21 notice also updated two existing SDN entries, though the Treasury did not disclose which ones.

The designations increase compliance burdens on Lebanese banks already navigating U.S. sanctions on Hezbollah and on international actors involved in Lebanon’s reconstruction and political negotiations. They signal that Washington will treat senior Lebanese officials who protect Hezbollah’s armed status as direct sanctions targets.