A Vancouver company has been sanctioned by the USA government for its alleged ties to a $100-million network accused of financing Iran-backed Hezbollah.
Seven Seas for International Trading and Logistics was added to the U.S. sanctions list in a move that targeted 16 individuals and entities within the Middle East and Canada.
The sanctions allege the co-founder and chief executive officer of the B.C. company is Raoof Fadel, who is predicated in Qatar and involved with the “Hezbollah finance team.”
Corporate records obtained by Global News show the sanctioned Canadian company was registered in B.C. in 2022 and stays energetic as 1380892 B.C. LTD.
Its directors are listed as Fadel, in addition to Mohamad Wehbe and Ahmed Wehbe, all of whom are described within the records as residents of Qatar.
Along with sanctioning their B.C. company, the U.S. Treasury also imposed sanctions on Fadel and Mohamad Wehbe, who’re each Lebanese residents.
They might not be reached for comment.
The corporate’s corporate registration was accomplished by a Winnipeg consulting firm, while its registered address is a Vancouver law firm, the records shows.
Neither responded to requests for comment by deadline.
The corporate shouldn’t be sanctioned in Canada. Neither the B.C. nor the federal government have yet responded to requests for comment on the matter.
Hezbollah is a component of Iran’s so-called “axis of resistance,” a set of armed extremist groups that serve Tehran’s interests throughout the Middle East.
A listed terrorist group in Canada, which calls it a “radical Shia group,” Hezbollah is a component of the present conflict launched by the U.S. and Israel on Feb. 28.
Get each day National news
Get each day Canada news delivered to your inbox so you will never miss the day’s top stories.
Canada’s national security agencies have long reported that the international Hezbollah fundraising network was energetic within the country.
A 2022 Financial Transactions and Reports Evaluation Centre of Canada terrorist financing alert warned about Hezbollah’s activities.
It warned that, after the Islamic State, Hezbollah was the international terrorist group most incessantly detected moving money across borders.
The majority of the cash went to Lebanon, often laundered through auto sales, FINTRAC wrote in its operational alert to financial institutions.
In January, Global News reported that a Lebanese auto trader living in Ontario on a piece permit, Fahed Sowane, was allegedly laundering money “to profit Hezbollah.”
While Sowane, who denies the allegations, faces deportation over the allegations, enforcement motion related to Hezbollah is rare in Canada.
“Governments must do more to be certain that Canada shouldn’t be used as a shelter for Iran’s Islamic regime and its proxies that threaten global security and goal civilians,” said Nico Slobinsky of the Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs.
“We’re calling for strengthened enforcement measures, enhanced scrutiny and removal of regime‑linked actors operating in Canada, and firm motion to disrupt any financial or logistical support for designated terrorist organizations.”
This includes implementing B.C. Premier David Eby’s recent commitment that the province won’t be a refuge for war criminals and can ensure their prosecution and seizure of their funds.”
‘Hezbollah financial schemes’
Amid the war on Iran, the U.S. announced on Friday that it was sanctioning the B.C. company for its alleged role in a network led by Alaa Hamieh, whom it called a “Hezbollah financier.”
Hamieh, who holds Lebanese and Canadian passports, “owns, directly or not directly, multiple Hezbollah-associated corporations,” the U.S. Treasury said.
“Alaa Hamieh oversees a network of corporations, controlled through relations and shut associates, that launder and lift funds for Hezbollah’s finance team.”
Positioned in Lebanon, Syria, Poland, Slovenia, Qatar, and Canada, the network has been involved in projects “estimated to have enabled the diversion of over $100 million since 2020,” it said.
“This network represents a critical source of funding for Hezbollah, which continues to embrace violence despite calls to disarm.”
The director of the B.C. company, Fadel, is “involved in quite a few projects with Alaa Hamieh and the Hezbollah finance team,” in line with the allegations.
They include “Hezbollah-associated Seven Seas for International Trading and Logistics, which is the Canadian branch of Alaa Hamieh’s similarly named Lebanese corporations.”
The listing provides Hamieh’s Canadian passport number. One other Canadian passport holder, Usama Ali, allegedly runs the Hamas financing office.
Stewart.Bell@globalnews.ca