From the Simon Wiesenthal Center: Are US Funds Being Used to Support Hizballah?

The Wiesenthal Center is calling on the U.S. Government to investigate and clarify whether some recently reported Iraqi government donations to Lebanon are supporting Hezbollah.

Center officials learned that the Iraqi television station, Al Furat, recently reported that the Iraqi Government has donated 20 million U.S. dollars to Lebanon. It also provided a list of private donations made by key ministers and organizations in Iraq, including a 10 million Iraqi dinar donation pledged by Hezbollah in Iraq.

“In view of the statement made today by the head of the Iraqi parliament, Mahmoud al-Mashhadani who said in Cairo that his parliament supports Hezbollah as an ‘honest and legitimate resistance movement,’ we call on the United States government to investigate that the donations announced are not U.S. funds and are not being used to benefit the terrorist organization,” said Rabbi Marvin Hier, founder and dean of the Simon Wiesenthal Center.

“The United States did not spend trillions of dollars to liberate Iraq so that they could turn around and use American money to support the terrorist activities of Hezbollah. This should be investigated and clarified,” he concluded.

Below is a partial list of funds donated from Iraq thus far as reported on Al Furat:

Government of Iraq - 20 million U.S. Dollars
Hezbollah in Iraq - 10 million Iraqi Dinar
President Talabani - 100 million Iraqi Dinar
Vice President Abdulmahadi - 50 million Iraqi Dinar
Finance Minister Sulagh - 5 million Iraqi Dinar
Baghdad Governor - 5 million Iraqi Dinar
The Shrine Martyr Org. - 10 million Iraqi Dinar
Buratha Org. - 10 million Iraqi Dinar