Top Hezbollah financier arrested in Bucharest

ROMANIA/NEW YORK — The U.S. continues to arrest supporters of the Iranian-backed Hezbollah militia. One of Hezbollah’s key financers has now been detained. Mohammad Ibrahim Bazzi (58), who holds dual Lebanese and Belgian citizenship, was arrested on Friday at the airport of the Romanian capital of Bucharest. 

In 2018, the U.S. Treasury under its Rewards for Justice Program labeled Bazzi a “global terrorist” and offered $10 million for information about his whereabouts. The U.S. Suspects him of having funneled millions of dollars to Hezbollah over the years. 

“Mohammad Bazzi thought that he could secretly move hundreds of thousands of dollars from the United States to Lebanon without detection by law enforcement,” U.S. Attorney Breon Peace said in a press release. “Today’s arrest proves that Bazzi was wrong.”

Bazzi runs different companies in various countries.

Mohammed Bazzi, along with another Lebanese citizen, Talal Chahine (78) will be deported from Romania to the United States.