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Lebanon tightening noose on terrorism funding

The central bank of Lebanon is taking financial security precautions to stamp out terrorism funding and money laundering.

The central bank of Lebanon is taking steps to tighten financial security precautions in a bid to stamp out terrorism funding and money laundering.

“Lebanon is fully committed to all international decisions and resolutions in terms of money laundering and terrorism funding. We won’t accept any account of individual or group which is linked to terrorism activity and all banks are abiding by these guidelines,” said Riad Salameh the head of the Bank of Lebanon.

Salameh also pointed out that the central bank is monitoring closely all cash transactions inside and outside the country, especially those involving large amounts of money.

The Lebanese banking institutions have been under pressure from the US and its Western allies to tighten measures against the movement of cash in and out of the country.

Last year, the Lebanese government found fault with the activities of 13 bank accounts as a result of which it decided to ignore the bank secrecy law and monitor closely all transactions related to those accounts.

The government was reportedly worried that ISIL Takfiri terrorist group and its allies may be using some of those accounts to fund terrorist activities.

ISIL has stolen billions of dollars from banks in Syria and Iraq and billions more worth of cash and jewelry from people in both countries.

The terrorist group’s main source of income is oil trade, kidnapping for ransom, collection of taxes, bank robberies and looting.

In 2014, Forbes business magazine claimed that ISIL was the richest terrorist organization on earth with an annual financial turnover of USD 2 billion a year.

The ISIL terrorists currently control swathes of territory across Syria and Iraq. They have committed heinous atrocities in both countries, including the mass execution and beheading of local residents and foreign nationals.

HDS/SS


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