Israel Seizes Millions In Digital Currencies Meant For Iranian Proxies

Israel has seized millions of dollars worth of digital funds intended for use by Iranian-backed Lebanese group Hezbollah and the Quds Force arm of the Revolutionary Guards.

Defense Minister Yoav Gallant made the announcement on Tuesday, revealing that Israel has seized digital wallets linked to IRGC and Hezbollah.

His ministry said that since the start of this year, "Hezbollah, Quds Force (IRGC’s extraterritorial force) and Syrian operatives have used digital currencies to receive funds from third parties via illegal transactions”.The Defense Ministry said it had also thwarted the transfer of millions of dollars to these operatives.

Speaking at a conference hosted by the ministry’s National Bureau for Counter Terror Financing (NBCTF), Gallant said, “I issued an order that enabled the confiscation of said funds, as well as their transfer to the State of Israel. In doing so, we have effectively cut off the flow of terror funds via this channel.”

“A few days ago, an extensive and precedent-setting operation — to expose a route for financing terror with digital currencies — was wrapped up. This is the first incident of this magnitude, in which an infrastructure led by Hezbollah and the Iranian Quds Force that transferred millions of dollars to be used by terror elements was thwarted,” he added.

He said that the NBCTF developed new tools with the Mossad spy agency, the IDF’s Military Intelligence Directorate, the Israel Police, and other bodies, in order to combat financing of terror groups using cryptocurrency.

Noting Iran’s involvement, he said, “Whoever finances terror, or maintains a financial relationship with terror operatives, must know that he is a target, just like anyone who directs terrorism."

“As you can see, this time too there is a clear line behind the terror [financing] moves that originate in Iran. Iran is the financier, trainer, and spreader of terrorism against Israel and many countries around the world, both directly and through its proxies at the borders,” Gallant said.