On October 28, 2021, the US Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control designated Lebanese businessmen Jihad al-Arab and Dany Khoury, and Jamil Sayyed, a sitting member of Lebanon’s Parliament, for personally profiting from a pervasive culture of corruption and cronyism in Lebanon at the expense of the Lebanese people and state institutions. OFAC imposed the designations pursuant to Executive Order 13441, which targets persons who contribute to the breakdown of Lebanon’s economy, institutions and rule of law.
According to OFAC, Al-Arab and Khoury were designated for using their political connections to obtain multi-million dollar landfill projects and failing to fulfill the terms of those contracts that has contributed to a garbage crisis in Lebanon. OFAC designated Sayyed for working with a senior government officials to avoid complying with Lebanese banking policies and regulations in connection with the transfer of more than $120 million in overseas investments.
As a result of these designations, all US property and interests in property belonging to sanctioned individuals are blocked, and transactions with US persons are generally prohibited. In addition, transactions with entities that are owned 50 percent or more by one or more blocked persons are also blocked.
Department of Treasury Press Release