US imposes new Hezbollah sanctions targeting gold exchange firm

Trump administration vows to cut off Lebanese group ‘from the global financial system’ amid daily Israeli violations.

The United States has imposed sanctions on a gold firm in Lebanon that it accused of having ties to Hezbollah as Washington pushes to choke off the group’s revenue streams.

The administration of US President Donald Trump blacklisted Jood SARL on Tuesday, saying the company is helping convert Hezbollah’s “gold reserves into usable funds” to help sustain efforts to rebuild itself after a series of deadly attacks.

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“Hezbollah is a threat to peace and stability in the Middle East,” US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said in a statement.

“Treasury will work to cut these terrorists off from the global financial system to give Lebanon a chance to be peaceful and prosperous again.”

Hezbollah has long rejected US sanctions, which it says contribute to the economic crisis in Lebanon and primarily harm civilians.

The sanctions come at a time when gold prices have reached record highs, surpassing $5,000 per ounce.

The US Treasury said Jood SARL works under al-Qard al-Hassan (AQAH), an already sanctioned Hezbollah-linked entity that provides financial services in Lebanon.

“After facing challenges throughout early 2025 to secure funding, Hezbollah directed AQAH … to ensure the terrorist group’s continued access to cash flow,” the Treasury said.

“Senior al-Qard al-Hassan officials established a chain of companies to trade gold in Lebanon and potentially overseas.”

‘Painful blows’

On Tuesday, the Treasury also imposed sanctions on several individuals and shipping companies it said help generate revenue for Hezbollah.

The sanctions block the firms’ assets in the US and generally make it illegal for US citizens and companies to engage in financial transactions with them.

Israel delivered painful blows to Hezbollah in 2024, killing the group’s top military and political officials as the Israeli military invaded south Lebanon and turned many villages on the Lebanese side of the border into rubble.

Despite these setbacks, after the November 2024 ceasefire, Hezbollah provided millions of dollars to pay for temporary housing for families whose homes were destroyed in the Israeli assault.

Israel, which has launched daily attacks across Lebanon despite the truce, has been blocking the reconstruction of southern villages, preventing tens of thousands of displaced people from returning to their towns.

While piling up sanctions against Hezbollah, the US has not pressured Israel to stop its abuses against Lebanon.

Earlier this year, the Lebanese Foreign Ministry submitted a complaint to the United Nations documenting 2,036 Israeli violations of the “ceasefire” in the final three months of 2025.

Besides external pressures from the US and Israel, Hezbollah faces a push by the Lebanese government to disarm the group.

However, Hezbollah has rejected calls to give up its weapons, arguing it has a right to resist what it describes as Israeli “expansionism”.