Israel Seizes Millions in Crypto From Iranian Military and Hezbollah: Report

The Israeli government has seized millions of dollars in crypto from wallets linked to the Iranian military and the Iran-backed Hezbollah militant group in Lebanon, according to a report by the Associated Press, citing comments from the nation’s Defense Minister.

The seizure of the crypto wallets came after an order from Defense Minister Yoav Gallant earlier this week. The effort involved Israel’s Mossad spy agency, its military intelligence office, the Israeli police and others.

“This is the first incident of this magnitude,” the report said, quoting Gallant. “We have effectively cut off the flow of terror funds via this channel.” He also alleged that Iran’s military and Hezbollah relied on virtual currency to finance their militant activities, according to the report.

The exact amount seized has not been made clear. The wallets had sent or received funds in alleged financing schemes for the Iranian military and Hezbollah, the report said.

Iran’s mission to the United Nations did not immediately respond to a request for comment from CoinDesk.

In May, Israeli authorities seized roughly 190 Binance accounts with alleged ties to terrorist groups such as Hamas and Daesh since 2021, according to Reuters.