U.S. Treasury Department Targets Iran’s Support for Terrorism

August 3, 2010
TG-810

Fact Sheet: U.S. Treasury Department Targets Iran’s Support for Terrorism

Treasury Announces New Sanctions Against
Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps-Qods Force Leadership

The U.S. Department of the Treasury announced today a set of designations targeting the Government of Iran's support for terrorism and terrorist organizations, including Hizballah, Hamas, Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ), the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine-General Command (PFLP-GC) and the Taliban. Iran is the primary funder of Hizballah and has long been recognized as the most active state sponsor of terrorism. Today's designations expose Iran's use of its state apparatus – including the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps-Qods Force – and state-run social service organizations to support terrorism under the guise of providing reconstruction and economic development assistance or social services.

Pursuant to Executive Order (E.O.) 13224 – which is aimed at freezing the assets of terrorists and their supporters, thereby isolating them from the U.S. financial and commercial systems – Treasury today designated:

• Four Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps-Qods Force (IRGC-QF) senior officers: Hushang Allahdad, Hossein Musavi, Hasan Mortezavi and Mohammad Reza Zahedi for their roles in the IRGC-QF's support of terrorism
• The Iranian Committee for the Reconstruction of Lebanon (ICRL) and its director, Hessam Khoshnevis, for providing financial, material, and technological support to Hizballah;
• The Imam Khomeini Relief Committee (IKRC) Lebanon branch for being owned or controlled by Hizballah and for providing financial and material support to Hizballah and its director, Ali Zuraik; and
• Razi Musavi, a Syria-based Iranian official, for providing financial and material support to Hizballah.

As a result of today's designations, all transactions involving any of the above designees and any U.S. person are prohibited, and any assets the designees may have under U.S. jurisdiction are frozen.

Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps-Qods Force (IRGC-QF) Leadership
Treasury today further targeted the IRGC-QF by designating four of its senior officers: Hushang Allahdad, Hossein Musavi, Hasan Mortezavi and Mohammad Reza Zahedi.

• Hushang Allahdad has been a financial officer for the IRGC-QF since at least 2002. In this position, Allahdad personally oversees distribution of funds to Levant-based terrorist groups and provides financial support for designated terrorist entities including Hizballah, Hamas, and PIJ.
• RGC-QF General Hossein Musavi is Commander of the IRGC-QF Ansar Corps, whose responsibilities include IRGC-QF activities in Afghanistan. As Ansar Corps Commander, Musavi has provided financial and material support to the Taliban.
• In his capacity as an IRGC-QF senior officer, Colonel Hasan Mortezavi provides financial and material support to the Taliban.
• Mohammad Reza Zahedi, the commander of the IRGC-QF in Lebanon, plays a key role in Iran's support to Hizballah. Zahedi held several senior positions in the IRGC-Qods Force including Commander of the Lebanon Corps and Deputy Commander of the Qods Force. He has also acted as a liaison to Hizballah and Syrian intelligence services and is reportedly charged with guaranteeing weapons shipments to Hizballah.

IRGC and IRGC-QF Support for Terrorist Organizations:
The IRGC-QF is the Government of Iran's primary arm for executing its policy of supporting terrorist and insurgent groups. The IRGC-QF provides material, logistical assistance, training and financial support to militants and terrorist operatives throughout the Middle East and South Asia. It was designated by Treasury pursuant to E.O. 13224 in October 2007 for its support of terrorism.

The Government of Iran also uses the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and IRGC-QF to implement its foreign policy goals, including, but not limited to, seemingly legitimate activities that provide cover for intelligence operations and support to terrorist and insurgent groups. These activities include economic investment, reconstruction, and other types of aid to Iraq, Afghanistan, and Lebanon, implemented by companies and institutions that act for or on behalf of, or are owned or controlled by the IRGC and the Iranian government.

• In Afghanistan, the IRGC-QF provides select members of the Taliban with weapons, funding, logistics and training. In Iraq, the Government of Iran trains, equips, and funds Iraqi Shia militant groups.
• In the Levant, the IRGC-QF continues to support designated terrorist groups such as Hizballah and Hamas. Hizballah is the largest recipient of Iranian financial aid, training, and weaponry; and Iran's senior leadership has cited Hizballah as a model for other militant groups. Iran also provides training, weapons, and money to Hamas, bolstering the group's ability to maintain its armed resistance and opposition to Israeli-Palestinian peace negotiations.

Iranian Committee for the Reconstruction of Lebanon (ICRL)
The ICRL provides financial, material, and technical support to Hizballah. It was established by the Government of Iran after the 2006 Israel-Hizballah conflict and functions as a key channel for Iran's support to Hizballah reconstruction efforts in Lebanon.

In addition to ICRL's stated mission of supporting reconstruction, ICRL has financed and facilitated Hizballah's infrastructure and private communications network that enables the terrorist group to communicate securely.

The ICRL has provided funding and engineering expertise to Hizballah's construction arm, Jihad al-Binaa, which was designated by Treasury pursuant to E.O. 13224 in February 2007.

Treasury also today designated ICRL director, Hessam Khoshnevis for providing technical support to Hizballah's reconstruction efforts in Lebanon and to the expansion of the terrorist group's private communications network. Khoshnevis also operates as President Ahmadinejad's personal representative in Lebanon.

Imam Khomeini Relief Committee (IKRC) Lebanon Branch
The IKRC in Lebanon is a Hizballah social service organization that was created by the Government of Iran in the 1980s and is directed and run by Hizballah members or cadre. Iran has provided millions of dollars to the Hizballah-run branch in Lebanon since 2007. The IKRC has helped fund and operate Hizballah youth training camps, which have been used to recruit future Hizballah members and operatives. Hizballah Secretary General Hassan Nasrallah has acknowledged the IKRC branch in Lebanon as one of Hizballah's openly-functioning institutions linked to and funded by Iran.

Also designated today is the director of IKRC in Lebanon, Ali Zuraik, for acting for or on behalf of the IKRC in Lebanon. Zuraik has also publicly acknowledged that the IKRC in Lebanon operates under the umbrella of Hizballah.

Razi Musavi
Razi Musavi is a Syria-based Iranian official who is a key conduit for Iranian support to Hizballah. He provides crucial support to Hizballah, including financial and material support to the Lebanon-based terrorist group that is closely allied with Iran and often acts at its behest.

Identifying Information: