LEBANON IS A MAJOR MONEY LAUNDERING CENTER | MONTE FRIESNER FINANCIAL NEWS |

IT IS TIME TO DESIGNATE LEBANON AS A JURISDICTION OF PRIMARY MONEY LAUNDERING CONCERN |

FROM THE - JOURNALS of Monte Friesner – Criminal & Intelligence Analyst and Consulaire for WANTED SA ~

 

Contributed & Written by Kenneth Rijock

 

 

 

It is high time for the United States to designate Lebanon as a jurisdiction of primary money laundering concern. A major American NGO* has actually asked Deka International SA, in Luxembourg, to divest itself of Lebanese sovereign bonds. Its argument tracks issues with which we we are all, sadly, very familiar:

(1) Hezbollah is laundering drug trafficking & smuggling profits through the purchase of Lebanese sovereign debt.

 

(2) The Lebanese banking system generally accepts large cash deposits without question.

 

(3) Iranian sanctions evasion efforts are facilitated by passing funds through Lebanese banks.

 

(4) Terrorist financing, for a number of specially designated global terrorist organisations, flows through Lebanese banks.

For some reason, the United States, which supports the beleaguered national government in Beirut, has utterly failed to deal with the reality. With Hezbollah, which is in actual control of several ministerial posts, several banks, and the entire southern portion of the country, funded in large part by Iran, it seems that there's no other choice.

If I was a director of compliance at a major international bank in the EU, or North America, I would take a hard look at all my clients' financial transactions with the Lebanese financial system, and close accounts that pose a risk to the bank forthwith. I would not want my bank to be found later to be a terrorist facilitator.

Will the US designate Lebanon ?

 

WANTED SA kindly thanks US Treasury, Kenneth Rijock, AFP, Reuters, BBC, Associated Press, DEA, FBI, ICE, Westlaw, Arutz Sheva, and all the Parties, Press, Journalists, Law Enforcement and Securities forces  who have contributed to the many articles and their sincere opinions and statements.

WANTED SA states that the facts and opinions stated in this article are those of the author and not those of WANTED SA. We do not warrant the accuracy of any of the facts and opinions stated in this article nor do we endorse them or accept any form of responsibility for the articles.

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