Israel has designated the al-Qard al-Hassan financial institution as a terrorist organization, Defense Minister Yoav Gallant announced Tuesday morning. "I have designated the Qard al-Hassan financial institution as a terrorist organization," a statement from the minister read. "Hezbollah’s bank is used to purchase weapons, pay the salaries of terrorists, and keep Hezbollah’s terror machine going." "Degrading Hezbollah’s capabilities requires both a military and economic campaign. We are destroying the terrorist organization’s ability to both launch and buy missiles." Related articles: Gallant calls return to fighting in Gaza the 'right move' 'Gantz and Eisenkot's resignation harmed return of hostages' 'Netanyahu, Eisenkot and Gantz were against the maneuver' Government didn't do everything possible to bring back hostages Earlier this week, a senior Israeli intelligence official said that the IDF would be attacking al-Qard al-Hassan , The US sanctioned al-Qard al-Hassan in 2007, stating that it was being used by the Hezbollah terror group "as a cover to manage the terrorist group’s financial activities and gain access to the international financial system," according to Reuters . On Saturday evening , IDF spokesman Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari warned that Israel would imminently strike in Beirut and other locations in Lebanon, and that civilians should evacuate locations being used to finance Hezbollah's terror activities. "I emphasize here: Anyone located near sites used to fund Hezbollah’s terror activities must move away from these locations immediately," he stressed. "We will strike several targets in the coming hours and additional targets throughout the night." Hagari added, "In the coming days, we will reveal how Iran funds Hezbollah's terror activities by using civilian institutions, associations, and NGOs that act as fronts for terrorism. We will carry out these strikes tonight and provide updates on the results in the next days." On Monday evening , the IDF published documentation showing that former Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah had a bunker, which served as a central financial facility for the Hezbollah terrorist organization and was built beneath the Al-Sahel Hospital in Beirut. "This bunker below the Al-Sahel Hospital in Beirut was used for many years by the former leader of Hezbollah, Hassan Nasrallah, as his emergency bunker," the IDF stated. "The bunker currently serves as Hezbollah's central financial facility, where Hezbollah stores the majority of its money - money that was stolen from Lebanese civilians and is used for terrorist activities," the military added.
