US Sanctions Target Lebanon’s ‘Deep State’ Before Washington Security Meeting

The latest US Treasury sanctions on Lebanese and Iranian figures linked to Hezbollah looked less like another routine political measure and more like a direct warning to the Lebanese state and its security and military institutions. The sanctions came days before a Lebanese US security meeting in Washington on May 29, expected to address the future of security in southern Lebanon and the state’s role in controlling illegal weapons. The Treasury measures marked a notable shift. For the first time, they targeted serving officers in official security institutions, signaling that Washington has moved beyond pressuring Hezbollah and its political allies to warning Lebanese state bodies themselves against leniency or obstruction in implementing government and security decisions. Lebanon has not issued an official response. Ministerial sources told Asharq Al-Awsat that the timing of the sanctions “raises questions, especially since there was no atmosphere suggesting such a step, but the US Treasury has its own considerations.” They said the measures “could have a negative impact on the course of negotiations.” The US message, decisions are not enough; implementation is required The sanctions were issued shortly before the Lebanese-US security meeting in Washington, as international pressure mounts on Lebanon to meet its commitments to restrict weapons to the state. By targeting officers in the army and General Security, Washington appeared to be saying that the problem is no longer limited to whether the Lebanese government has made a political decision. The issue is whether executive and security institutions can carry it out. Dr. Sami Nader, head of the Levant Institute for Strategic Affairs, said the sanctions target what he called the “deep state” inside Lebanese institutions. For Washington, he said, the problem is no longer only the existence of a political decision, but the lack of actual implementation inside administrations and security and military institutions. Nader told Asharq Al-Awsat that the United States is signaling that the Lebanese government has, at certain stages, taken decisions related to its security commitments and Hezbollah’s weapons. The Lebanese army, he said, has also drawn up plans and implementation mechanisms. But according to the US reading, those decisions face obstruction in parts of the state, where some actors work to delay or block implementation, allowing Hezbollah’s influence in official institutions to continue. Nader said the importance of the sanctions lies in the fact that they do not only target Hezbollah’s political environment. They move toward a direct accusation that the party has influence inside security and military chains of command. Washington, he said, is effectively saying the problem is no longer inside the Cabinet, where decisions are made, but in what happens after those decisions are issued and passed to the executive and security agencies tasked with enforcing them. Targeting official officers for the first time carries major political and security significance, Nader said, because it reflects a US conviction that certain figures within certain institutions are obstructing missions aimed at controlling the security situation or implementing government decisions. The sanctions, therefore, form part of an escalating US track aimed at increasing pressure on official Lebanon before the Washington meeting, “to free the implementation mechanism,” Nader said, and to push the Lebanese state to make clearer commitments on applying decisions and dealing with Hezbollah’s weapons. Details of the sanctions, officers, lawmakers and the Iranian ambassador The sanctions covered Iran’s ambassador to Beirut, Mohammad Reza Sheibani, Hezbollah lawmakers Hassan Fadlallah, Ibrahim al-Moussawi and Hussein al-Hajj Hassan, and former minister Mohammad Fneish. They also targeted two prominent Amal Movement figures, Ahmad Baalbaki and Ali Safawi, as well as Brigadier General Khattar Nassereddine, head of the National Security Department at the General Directorate of General Security, and Colonel Samer Hamadeh, head of the southern suburbs branch at the Lebanese army’s Intelligence Directorate. The US Treasury Department said those targeted are “embedded in the Lebanese parliament, military, and security agencies,” accusing them of working to preserve Hezbollah’s influence inside state institutions and obstructing the path to peace. US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Hezbollah is a terrorist organization and must be fully disarmed. He said Washington would continue targeting officials who enable Hezbollah to continue its violent campaign and obstruct lasting peace. Alongside the sanctions, the US State Department announced a reward of up to $10 million for information leading to the disruption of Hezbollah’s financial mechanisms, another sign that Washington is tightening political, financial and security pressure in the next phase. The army and General Security respond, loyalty is to the state The Lebanese army and General Security moved quickly to reject the US accusations, issuing statements that stressed: “Loyalty is to the institution and the homeland.” The army command said all officers and soldiers “perform their national duties with full professionalism and responsibility.” It said their loyalty is “only to the military institution and the homeland,” and that they carry out their duties away from any pressure or other considerations. The General Directorate of General Security also voiced full confidence in its officers and personnel, stressing their commitment to laws and regulations and to working “away from any external dictates or pressure.” It said any proven violation would be subject to legal and judicial accountability. Hezbollah and Amal, sanctions are “intimidation” and pressure on the state Hezbollah described the sanctions as “an American attempt to intimidate the Lebanese people and an attack on the sovereignty of the state and its security institutions.” The party said the sanctions “will not affect its choices,” and called the targeting of official officers “a blatant attempt to subject security institutions to the conditions of American guardianship.” The Amal Movement said the sanctions against figures affiliated with it were “unacceptable and unjustified,” describing them as an attack on the movement’s political role and its position inside the state. Hezbollah’s parliamentary bloc also condemned the sanctions on lawmakers and officers, calling them direct interference in Lebanese affairs and an attempt to pressure official state institutions into complying with US demands.