US sanctions Hezbollah operative and updates Iranian terrorist group designation

The United States sanctioned on Tuesday a top Hezbollah operative, updated a designation of an Iranian terrorist group and designated Pakistan’s Balochistan Liberation Army as a terrorist entity.

Husain Ali Hazzima is the chief of Hezbollah’s intelligence unit, while the Iranian group Jundallah, which was designated in 2010 as a terrorist group, began using the new name Jaysh al-Adl and associated aliases in 2012, according to the U.S. State Department.

Jundallah has allegedly been behind numerous attacks that have killed Iranian civilians and government officials, including a suicide-bombing in February and kidnapping of Iranian security personnel in October.

The Balochistan Liberation Army has allegedly been responsible for terrorist attacks in the Pakistani province.

“Today’s actions notify the U.S. public and the international community that Hazzima and BLA have committed, or poses a significant risk of committing, acts of terrorism, and that Jundallah, having adopted the new name Jaysh al-Adl, continues to engage in terrorism that threatens the national security of the United States,” said the State Department in a statement. “Terrorist designations expose and isolate organizations and individuals, and deny them access to the U.S. financial system.”

Source: JNS