Hezbollah receiving four times more funding after Iran sanctions lifted

Iran is reported to have boosted its financial support for Hezbollah since the lifting of UN sanctions against the Islamic Republic in January 2016.

Israeli newspapers reported today a massive windfall for the Lebanese Shia militant group after major western powers released billions of pounds worth of assets belonging to the Iranian regime following a deal over Tehran’s nuclear energy programme.

In the two years since the sanction was lifted, Iran has paid its proxy, Hezbollah, $830 million annually, a considerable increase from the $200 million it used to pay each year prior to 2016.

Israel fears that Iran and Hezbollah’s growing influence will endanger its own security. Its leaders have been lobbying hard to keep Iranian influence in the region checked. This has proved almost impossible amidst the war in Syria which saw Hezbollah gaining prominence as a major military force.

Read: US and Israeli security officials in conflict over Iran and Hezbollah

It’s not clear how the US, which believes Hezbollah is a terrorist group, will react to the huge increase in payments believed to be directly related to the lifting of the sanctions. While President Donald Trump has been bullish about the nuclear deal many of his senior officials do not seem to share his view.

Security officials from Israel and the US were reported to have locked horns over the issue during a meeting last month in which US National Security Adviser General H.R McMaster brushed off Israel’s concerns over Iran and Hezbollah.