$1.7m in Crypto Supposedly Used for Terrorism is Now Seized by Israel

Join Our Telegram channel to stay up to date on breaking news coverage

Following the orders by the Defense Minister of Israel- Yoav Gallant, the Israeli forces seized about $1.7 million worth of cryptocurrency in an unprecedented event.

Crypto Seized From Wallets Linked to Iran and its Lebanon Ally.

$1.7 million worth of cryptocurrency was wiped out from a digital wallet linked to the Iranian military and Hezbollah. Gallant said that Hezbollah is a Lebanese militant group that has substantial backing from the Iranian government.

While addressing the National Bureau for Counter Terror Financing in Israel, Gallant announced that this was the first time Israel had carried out a crypto seizure of this magnitude, and that too against Iran. The crypto assets were handled by Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and Hezbollah and supposedly were used for terrorism activities.

Seizure Carried out with the Help of Chainalysis

The seizure was carried out weeks after Defence Minister Gallant issued the order. According to Gallant, these crypto assets were used by the Iranian military and Hezbollah for terrorism purposes. Gallant approved the move and ordered that the seized funds should be handed over to the Israeli government.

Israel Defense Minister

The operation was made successful by Mossad, a well-known spy agency in Israel, Israel’s military intelligence, and the police. Israel’s government also took help from Chainalysis, which is a crypto investigation firm.

Seized Cryptocurrencies were all in USDT

According to the reports by Chainalysis, the seized cryptocurrency was all in USDT (Tether) on the TRON network. Tether is deemed a safe digital asset in the cryptocurrency space.

Its value is pegged to the price of the US dollar, irrespective of the market condition. The idea is to ensure that the value of Tether remains the same as its peg. This is why it is considered a stablecoin.

Check out our guide on how to buy Tether.

Cryptocurrency Being Used for Terrorism

Gallant said that cryptocurrencies had been increasingly used to fund the daily activities of the Lebanese group Hezbollah, Iran’s IRGC, and “Syrian elements”. According to this, the funds get transferred to terror groups from third parties with the help of money exchangers.

The current seizure followed the same pattern. As per the Analysis, the funds were transferred from financial facilitators to Hawala services and brokers. From there, it was moved to Hezbollah addresses. In total, a list of 40 such addresses have been recovered from the seizure.

He also pointed out that this time, funds moved from Iran, which made its stand clear as a “financier, trainer, and spreader of terrorism” with the help of its ally groups such as Hezbollah.

All the seized funds are to be handed over to the Israeli government, and it is not yet clear what the government plans to do with it.

This is not the first time Israel has tackled financial terrorism, though. Previously, Israel’s government had seized around 200 Binance accounts which were linked to tourist groups such as Palestinian Hamas and Daesh, and other Islamic State.

Conclusion

Cryptocurrency has a high level of encryption and security, which makes it very difficult to trace. The transactions are permissionless and do not operate by a central authority. They can easily mask the identity of the users, thus giving freedom to the token holders to use it as they please.

This high level of anonymity could be the reason why they are increasingly used for financial crimes and other illegal activities such as terrorism. In addition to this, many groups linked to terrorism are prohibited by the international financial system because of their previous records; this is why digital assets seem more convenient to them.

However, as the cryptocurrency industry gets more regularised and scrutinized by the US Government, we believe that digital assets funded by illegal activities will stop – or at least drop.

Meanwhile, if you are looking for a low-cap meme coin with great upcoming potential, do look at Wall Street Memes’ ongoing presale.

Related

  • Best Crypto Presales
  • Is it Too Late to Buy Bitcoin?
  • Israel Siezes Millions in Crypto from Iranian Military

Wall Street Memes - Next Big Crypto

Rating

Wall Street Memes
  • Early Access Presale Live Now
  • Established Community of Stocks & Crypto Traders
  • Featured on BeInCrypto, Bitcoinist, Yahoo Finance
  • Rated Best Crypto to Buy Now In Meme Coin Sector
  • Team Behind OpenSea NFT Collection - Wall St Bulls
  • Tweets Replied to by Elon Musk
Wall Street Memes
Learn More

Join Our Telegram channel to stay up to date on breaking news coverage

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

3 Top Trending Tokens of 2024: Solana, Retik Finance, Shiba Inu

Image
As we enter 2024, the crypto world eagerly speculates which blockchain projects could dominate the upcoming year. Analyzing recent traction, developments, and market dynamics, we can spotlight the top trending tokens poised for greatness when midnight strikes.Three digital assets are prime contenders to lead the 2024 charge - Solana, Retik Finance, and Shiba Inu. Each brings unique attributes to capture investor attention and potentially mainstream adoption. Solana - The Speed Demon Known as one of the fastest and most scalable blockchain networks, Solana has already witnessed tremendous growth since launching in 2020. Yet 2023 seemingly marked a turning point, with several bullish events driving momentum.Most recently, Solana hosted its long-awaited IGNITION conference, drawing over 1,400 attendees and coinciding with a 70% price pump for its SOL token. The team also committed over $100 million to initiatives like Web3 mobile phones and an updated Solana wallet.With blazing tran
Read more

Missed Solana Rise, These Altcoins Might Rise Higher

Image
If there was one coin that exceeded even the most positive expectations it would be Solana (SOL). The December performance of the coin showed that anything is possible for the crypto market and it might not be the only cryptocurrency that stands to gain from the growing interest in altcoins. The coin experienced 59.5% to 69.7% surges in the span of weeks and days, which must have been very encouraging for those who believed in it and had already accumulated significant amounts.  Missing out on such a rapid ascent hurt many crypto enthusiasts, but nothing is lost for those who failed to buy into Slana (SOL) in time. We did our best to compile a list of those altcoins that could be ready to experience significant gains over the next several weeks, or months, and we believe that these coins have the potential to surpass the rates of Solana (SOL). Top Altcoins That Might Rise Higher ScapesMania : Promising newcomer in presale, offering early investment benefits. Aptos (
Read more

3 Tokens That Could Give 25x Returns in 2024

Image
The crypto market is known for its extreme volatility and ability to produce incredible returns within short periods. As we enter 2024, many wonder which cryptocurrencies have the potential to rally hard and deliver outsized gains to investors. Three tokens—Shiba Inu (SHIB), Retik Finance (RETIK), and Dogecoin (DOGE)—stand out due to their solid foundations and unique value propositions. Shiba Inu (SHIB) - The Top Meme Coin Contender Shiba Inu entered the crypto scene in 2020 as a self-proclaimed "Dogecoin killer." Shiba Inu's (SHIB) cute Shiba Inu theme quickly captivated investors and grew an extremely passionate community. In 2021, Shiba Inu (SHIB) delivered mind-blowing 43 million percent gains as speculation went parabolic.Although Shiba Inu has retreated significantly from its all-time high of $0.000088, it remains a top contender to rally hard in the next bull market. As one of the most prominent meme coins with a robust ecosystem, there is substantial confid
Read more