US slaps new sanctions on Hezbollah chief over Syria

The United States on Thursday imposed new sanctions on Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah and two other figures in the Lebanese resistance group over their support of Syrian President Bashar Assad. The U.S. Treasury move adds to measures already levied on Hezbollah, which was first designated by Washington as a terrorist group in 2001. Hezbollah has provided training, advice and logistical support to Assad's forces, and has facilitated training for them by Iran's elite Revolutionary Guards, it said. Hezbollah has also "played a substantial role" in efforts to push rebel forces from areas inside Syria, the Treasury added. "By aiding Assad's violent campaign against the Syrian people and working to support a regime that will eventually fall, Hezbollah's ongoing activity undermines regional stability and poses a direct threat to Lebanon's security," said David Cohen, Treasury under-secretary for terrorism and financial intelligence. "Hezbollah's actions, overseen by Hassan Nasrallah and executed by Mustafa Badr al-Din and Talal Hamayah, clearly reveal its true nature as a terrorist and criminal organization." The U.S. sanctions forbid Americans from having or supporting any business or financial dealings with those named.