A Vancouver company has been sanctioned by the United States 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 in 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 based 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 remains active as 1380892 B.C. LTD.
Its directors are listed as Fadel, as well as Mohamad Wehbe and Ahmed Wehbe, all of whom are described in the records as residents of Qatar.
In addition to sanctioning their B.C. company, the U.S. Treasury also imposed sanctions on Fadel and Mohamad Wehbe, who are both Lebanese citizens.
They could not be reached for comment.
The company’s corporate registration was completed 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 company is not sanctioned in Canada. Neither the B.C. nor the federal government have yet responded to requests for comment on the matter.
Hezbollah is part of Iran’s so-called “axis of resistance,” a collection 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 part of the current conflict launched by the U.S. and Israel on Feb. 28.
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Canada’s national security agencies have long reported that the international Hezbollah fundraising network was active in the country.
A 2022 Financial Transactions and Reports Analysis 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 frequently detected moving money across borders.
The bulk of the money 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 work permit, Fahed Sowane, was allegedly laundering money “to benefit Hezbollah.”
While Sowane, who denies the allegations, faces deportation over the allegations, enforcement action related to Hezbollah is rare in Canada.
“Governments must do more to ensure that Canada is not used as a safe haven for Iran’s Islamic regime and its proxies that threaten global security and target civilians,” said Nico Slobinsky of the Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs.
“We are calling for strengthened enforcement measures, enhanced scrutiny and removal of regime‑linked actors operating in Canada, and firm action 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 will not be a refuge for war criminals and will 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 indirectly, multiple Hezbollah-associated companies,” the U.S. Treasury said.
“Alaa Hamieh oversees a network of companies, controlled through family members and close associates, that launder and raise funds for Hezbollah’s finance team.”
Located 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 numerous projects with Alaa Hamieh and the Hezbollah finance team,” according to 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 companies.”
The listing provides Hamieh’s Canadian passport number. Another Canadian passport holder, Usama Ali, allegedly runs the Hamas financing office.
Stewart.Bell@globalnews.ca