Israel’s Defense Ministry has frozen 37 digital wallets linked to Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps, saying they were used to finance Iran-backed terror organizations, including Hezbollah.
The National Bureau for Counter Terror Financing, part of the Defense Ministry, said the wallets contained cryptocurrency worth more than 24 million shekels ($7 million). Defense Minister Israel Katz signed administrative orders Wednesday freezing the wallets.
(Photo: ATTA KENARE / AFP)
According to the bureau’s investigation, the wallets were used to transfer funds to terror organizations supported by Iran, led by Hezbollah. An analysis of the wallets found that they were part of a terror-financing infrastructure and were also linked to Hezbollah, with tens of millions of dollars transferred through them over the years to terror groups.
The bureau, headed by attorney Yoray Matzlawi, operates within the Defense Ministry in coordination with representatives from Israel’s intelligence and law enforcement agencies, including the Mossad, Shin Bet, Military Intelligence, police, Prison Service and Tax Authority. Those bodies provide intelligence and operational information used to identify financial networks linked to terror activity.
On the basis of intelligence and legal opinions, the defense minister can sign administrative orders freezing assets without a lengthy criminal investigation or court proceeding. The bureau also transfers information gathered by Israeli intelligence and enforcement agencies to foreign countries, enabling them to act against the relevant entities through their own authorities.