Beirut // Hizbollah will not be affected by US sanctions because it receives its money directly from Iran, not through Lebanese banks, the head of the Lebanese Shiite movement said on Friday.
Hassan Nasrallah brushed off assertions that Hizbollah would be hurt by the sanctions on Lebanese financial institutions that work with the group in a speech broadcast by the group’s Al Manar station.
“We do not have any business projects or investments via banks,” Mr Nasrallah said, insisting the group “will not be affected”.
“We are open about the fact that Hizbollah’s budget, its income, its expenses, everything it eats and drinks, its weapons and rockets, are from the Islamic Republic of Iran,” he said.
Iran was instrumental in Hizbollah’s inception three decades ago and has provided financial and military support to the group.
In December, the US congress voted to impose sanctions on banks that deal with Hizbollah, which Washington considers terrorist group.
Lebanon’s central bank last month instructed the country’s banks and financial institutions to comply with the new measure against the group.
Hizbollah has fiercely criticised the law and accused central bank governor Riad Salameh of “yielding” to Washington’s demands.
“As long as Iran has money, we have money ... Just as we receive the rockets that we use to threaten Israel, we are receiving our money. No law will prevent us from receiving it,” Mr Nasrallah said.
The Hizbollah chief also warned that some banks were applying the law too harshly and shutting down the accounts of Lebanese charities.
Earlier this month, a bomb exploded outside the Beirut headquarters of Blom Bank, one of the country’s largest, wounding one person.
Several Lebanese newspapers known to be critical of Hizbollah said at the time the explosion was a “message” to banks complying with the US ruling.
Washington has labelled Hizbollah a global terrorist group since 1995, accusing it of a long list of attacks including the bombing of the US Embassy and Marine barracks in Lebanon in 1983.
The Lebanese group has sent its fighters into the civil war in neighbouring Syria to support president Bashar Al Assad, whose forces are also backed by Iranian troops and Russian air strikes.
The US, Arab Gulf states and Turkey back an assortment of Syrian rebel groups, some of which are also fighting ISIL.
Mr Nasrallah on Friday said his group would be sending more fighters to Syria’s Aleppo province, where pro-government forces are battling Syrian rebels on several fronts, despite the heavy losses it has suffered there.
“We will increase our presence in Aleppo,” he said in his speech to mark 40 days since the killing of Hizbollah’s top commander in Syria, Mustafa Badreddine, in an explosion in Damascus. “There can be no retreat, and no doubt.”
Mr Nasrallah said 26 Hizbollah fighters were killed in Aleppo in June.
* Agence France-Presse and Associated Press
THE BIO
Age: 30
Favourite book: The Power of Habit
Favourite quote: "The world is full of good people, if you cannot find one, be one"
Favourite exercise: The snatch
Favourite colour: Blue
UAE v Gibraltar
What: International friendly
When: 7pm kick off
Where: Rugby Park, Dubai Sports City
Admission: Free
Online: The match will be broadcast live on Dubai Exiles’ Facebook page
UAE squad: Lucas Waddington (Dubai Exiles), Gio Fourie (Exiles), Craig Nutt (Abu Dhabi Harlequins), Phil Brady (Harlequins), Daniel Perry (Dubai Hurricanes), Esekaia Dranibota (Harlequins), Matt Mills (Exiles), Jaen Botes (Exiles), Kristian Stinson (Exiles), Murray Reason (Abu Dhabi Saracens), Dave Knight (Hurricanes), Ross Samson (Jebel Ali Dragons), DuRandt Gerber (Exiles), Saki Naisau (Dragons), Andrew Powell (Hurricanes), Emosi Vacanau (Harlequins), Niko Volavola (Dragons), Matt Richards (Dragons), Luke Stevenson (Harlequins), Josh Ives (Dubai Sports City Eagles), Sean Stevens (Saracens), Thinus Steyn (Exiles)
MO
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ECreators%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EMohammed%20Amer%2C%20Ramy%20Youssef%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EStars%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EMohammed%20Amer%2C%20Teresa%20Ruiz%2C%20Omar%20Elba%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ERating%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%204%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Director: Laxman Utekar
Cast: Vicky Kaushal, Akshaye Khanna, Diana Penty, Vineet Kumar Singh, Rashmika Mandanna
Rating: 1/5
More from Neighbourhood Watch
Bombshell
Director: Jay Roach
Stars: Nicole Kidman, Charlize Theron, Margot Robbie
Four out of five stars
ZAYED SUSTAINABILITY PRIZE
How to play the stock market recovery in 2021?
If you are looking to build your long-term wealth in 2021 and beyond, the stock market is still the best place to do it as equities powered on despite the pandemic.
Investing in individual stocks is not for everyone and most private investors should stick to mutual funds and ETFs, but there are some thrilling opportunities for those who understand the risks.
Peter Garnry, head of equity strategy at Saxo Bank, says the 20 best-performing US and European stocks have delivered an average return year-to-date of 148 per cent, measured in local currency terms.
Online marketplace Etsy was the best performer with a return of 330.6 per cent, followed by communications software company Sinch (315.4 per cent), online supermarket HelloFresh (232.8 per cent) and fuel cells specialist NEL (191.7 per cent).
Mr Garnry says digital companies benefited from the lockdown, while green energy firms flew as efforts to combat climate change were ramped up, helped in part by the European Union’s green deal.
Electric car company Tesla would be on the list if it had been part of the S&P 500 Index, but it only joined on December 21. “Tesla has become one of the most valuable companies in the world this year as demand for electric vehicles has grown dramatically,” Mr Garnry says.
By contrast, the 20 worst-performing European stocks fell 54 per cent on average, with European banks hit by the economic fallout from the pandemic, while cruise liners and airline stocks suffered due to travel restrictions.
As demand for energy fell, the oil and gas industry had a tough year, too.
Mr Garnry says the biggest story this year was the “absolute crunch” in so-called value stocks, companies that trade at low valuations compared to their earnings and growth potential.
He says they are “heavily tilted towards financials, miners, energy, utilities and industrials, which have all been hit hard by the Covid-19 pandemic”. “The last year saw these cheap stocks become cheaper and expensive stocks have become more expensive.”
This has triggered excited talk about the “great value rotation” but Mr Garnry remains sceptical. “We need to see a breakout of interest rates combined with higher inflation before we join the crowd.”
Always remember that past performance is not a guarantee of future returns. Last year’s winners often turn out to be this year’s losers, and vice-versa.
UPI facts
More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions