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Foreign Terrorist Organization (FTO) is a designation for non-United States-based organizations deemed by the United States secretary of state, in accordance with section 219 of the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965 (INA), to be involved in what US authorities define as terrorist activities. Most of the organizations on the list are Islamist extremist groups; the rest are nationalist/separatist groups, or Marxist militant groups.
Al-Manar is a Lebanese satellite television station owned and operated by the Islamist political party and paramilitary group Hezbollah, broadcasting from Beirut, Lebanon. The channel was launched on 4 June 1991 as a terrestrial channel and in 2000 as a satellite channel. It is a member of the Arab States Broadcasting Union. The station reaches around 50 million people.
Safi al-Din is an Arabic masculine given name and surname. It may also be spelled as Safi-ad-din, Safiuddin, Safieddine etc. The name is composed of two Arabic elements: Safi (صافي) meaning pure and Al-Din (الدین) religion. It may refer to:
The funding of Hezbollah comes from Lebanese business groups, private persons, businessmen, the Lebanese diaspora involved in African diamond exploration, other Islamic groups and countries, and the taxes paid by the Shia Lebanese. Hezbollah says that the main source of its income comes from its own investment portfolios and donations by Muslims.
A Specially Designated Global Terrorist (SDGT) is a person or entity that has been designated as such by the United States Department of State or the U.S. Department of the Treasury. An SDGT designation is made under authority of U.S. Executive Order 13224 of September 23, 2001, as amended by Executive Order 13268 of July 2, 2002, and Executive Order 13284 of January 23, 2003, and Title 31, Parts 595, 596, and 597 of the U.S. Code of Federal Regulations, among other U.S. laws and regulations. The main regulatory framework underlying the SDGT designation was established two weeks after the September 11 attacks in 2001 by U.S. President George W. Bush.
Ayman Saied Joumaa is a Colombian/Lebanese national and alleged drug kingpin. The US Treasury Department alleges that his organization launders money and traffics illicit drugs in the Americas, Middle East, Europe, and Africa, and that he has ties to Hezbollah and the Los Zetas cartel.
Nabil Qaouk was a Lebanese cleric and politician who served as the deputy head of Hezbollah's executive council and the commander of Hezbollah's "preventive security unit". He was designated as a Specially Designated Global Terrorist by the U.S. Department of the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC).
Hashem Safieddine was a Lebanese Shia cleric who served as the head of Hezbollah's Executive Council from 2001 until his assassination in 2024. A maternal cousin of Hassan Nasrallah, Safieddine was generally considered the "number two" in Hezbollah for many years. In 2017, he was declared a Specially Designated Global Terrorist by the United States and was also designated as a terrorist by several of the Arab Gulf states. Following Nasrallah's assassination on 27 September 2024, during the Israel–Hezbollah conflict, Safieddine was widely considered his likely successor. On 3 October 2024, Safieddine was targeted by an Israeli airstrike in Dahieh, south of Beirut. His death in the strike was confirmed later that month.
The Specially Designated Nationals and Blocked Persons List, also known as the SDN List, is a United States government sanctions/embargo measure targeting U.S.-designated terrorists, officials and beneficiaries of certain authoritarian regimes, and international criminals. The list is managed by the U.S. Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC). When individuals are added to the list of Specially Designated Nationals (SDN), their U.S. assets are blocked. Moreover, their names are added to automated screening systems used by banks in the United States and many foreign countries, making it difficult for them to open or hold accounts, transfer money, or transact properties internationally. Any individual or entity that provides support related to terrorism, drug trafficking or unauthorized military use to any person or entity appearing on the SDN list risks being penalized under the USA PATRIOT Act.
Qatar has been accused of allowing terror financiers to operate within its borders, which has been one of the justifications for the Qatar diplomatic crisis that started in 2017 and ended in 2021. In 2014, David S. Cohen, then United States Under Secretary of the Treasury for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence, accused Qatari authorities of allowing financiers who were on international blacklists to live freely in the country: "There are U.S.- and UN-designated terrorist financiers in Qatar that have not been acted against under Qatari law." Accusations come from a wide variety of sources including intelligence reports, government officials, and journalists.
Ali Taan Fayad, also known as Ali Amin, is a Lebanese-born Ukrainian arms dealer.
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"Members of Hezbollah established business relationships with South American drug cartels responsible for supplying large quantities of cocaine to the European and United States drug markets. An intricate network of money couriers collect and transport millions of euros in drug proceeds from Europe to the Middle East. The currency is then paid in Colombia to drug traffickers using the Hawala disbursement system. A large portion of the drug proceeds is laundered through Lebanon [facilitated by the now-defunct Lebanese Canadian Bank and other Lebanese nationals], where it is then used for the benefit of Hezbollah to purchase weapons."
Amer Mohamed Akil Rada is a Lebanese-Colombian Hezbollah operative. According to the United States and Argentina, Rada is a senior member of Hezbollah's External Security Organization and was an operational member involved in the 1994 AMIA bombing that killed 85 people.
Talal Hamiyah is a Lebanese militant leader. A senior military commander in Hezbollah since its founding in the early 1980s. He heads Hezbollah's External Security Organization (ESO), also known as Unit 910, which is responsible for planning and executing terrorist activities outside Lebanon. He is associated with terror attacks such as the 1994 AMIA bombing and 1996 Khobar Towers bombing. In 2017, the U.S. added Hamiyah to its Rewards for Justice Program, offering $7 million for information leading to his arrest. Since 2008 he is a senior member of Jihad Council.
On the night of 3 October 2024, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) carried out an airstrike on an underground bunker in Dahieh, a predominantly Shia Muslim suburb in the south of Beirut, Lebanon, where Hezbollah leaders, including Hashem Safieddine, had convened in the headquarters of Hezbollah's Intelligence Branch. Safieddine was later confirmed dead by both the IDF and Hezbollah.
Mohammad Haidar, also known as Abu Ali Haidar, is a Lebanese politician and senior leader in Hezbollah’s Jihad Council, which oversees the organization’s activities, including recruitment, training, and security.
Chekri Mahmoud Harb is a Lebanese criminal with Colombian citizenship known for his involvement in international drug trafficking and money laundering activities. He has been linked both to Hezbollah and the Medellin Cartel, facilitating financial operations that supported them.
Mohamad Noureddine is a Lebanese individual with significant ties to Hezbollah, a designated terrorist organization by multiple countries. He was arrested in 2016 as part of a major crackdown on Hezbollah's financial operations in Europe. He has been involved in money laundering and facilitating financial transactions that support Hezbollah's global operations. Noureddine owned and operated Trade Point International S.A.R.L., a company that acted as a conduit for moving illicit funds across various networks in Lebanon and Iraq.
Adham Tabaja also known as Adham Husayn Tabaja, is a Lebanese businessman with significant ties to Hezbollah, a U.S. designated Foreign Terrorist Organization. He himself was designated as a Specially Designated Global Terrorist (SDGT) by the U.S. Department of the Treasury on June 10, 2015, He is the majority owner of the Lebanon-based real estate development and construction firm Al-Inmaa Group for Tourism Works, which has been utilized as an investment mechanism by Hezbollah.
Ali Mohamed Kharroubi is a Lebanese national identified by the United States Department of the Treasury as a Specially Designated Narcotics Trafficker (SDNT) under the Foreign Narcotics Kingpin Designation Act.
References
- ↑ "Counter Terrorism Designations | Office of Foreign Assets Control". ofac.treasury.gov. Retrieved 2025-01-07.
- ↑ "Who was Hashem Safieddine, once seen as the future Hezbollah leader?". 2024.
- ↑ "Top Hezbollah official Hashem Safieddine is dead". AP News. 2024-10-23. Retrieved 2025-01-07.
- ↑ "Abdallah Safi-Al-Din". Counter Extremism Project. Retrieved 2025-01-07.
- ↑ "Treasury Targets Key Hizballah Financing Network and Iranian Conduit". U.S. Department of the Treasury. 2018.
- ↑ "Specially Designated Nationals List Update". Office of Foreign Assets Control. 2018.
- ↑ "Abdallah Safi-al-Din". IFMAT. 2019-12-16. Retrieved 2025-01-07.
- ↑ "Institute for the Study of War". Institute for the Study of War. Retrieved 2025-01-07.
- ↑ "Abdallah Safi-Al-Din". Counter Extremism Project. Retrieved 2025-01-07.