For the past decade, over 1.5 million Syrian refugees who fled from the brutal Assad regime in Damascus have been living in Lebanon under harsh conditions.

U.S. and European economic restrictions have been in place on Syria since 2011, including measures prohibiting most oil trade with Syria. Despite this, Syria has been a consistent top-five destination for U.S.-sanctioned Iranian oil since at least 2011. Some 8 percent of total Iranian oil exports end up in Syria—a lot of it forwarded to Hezbollah in Lebanon—facilitated by IRGC smuggling networks.

The “UANI Top 10 Iran Sanctions Targets” is a new monthly product that seeks to expose and restrict the nefarious activities of the Islamic Republic of Iran, both inside and outside of the country. Using primary data and intelligence, UANI experts identify and publish a list of 10 individuals and entities for the United States (U.S.), United Kingdom (UK), European Union (EU), and other Western allies to target with sanctions. Many of these persons and organizations fly below the radar of public scrutiny. UANI aims to increase awareness of their roles.

Tensions in Lebanon have reached a high point in recent days. It is not because of the fighting between Hezbollah and Israel.

It has been six months since the daily fighting between Israel and Hezbollah erupted. But it is still difficult to envision a "closing mechanism" that will put an end to the hostilities.

Just as travelers may not generally enter other countries without a valid passport, ships may not dock at foreign ports without a recognized flag. So it was a significant step this month when the U.S.

The “UANI Top 10 Iran Sanctions Targets” is a new monthly product that seeks to expose and restrict the nefarious activities of the Islamic Republic of Iran, both inside and outside of the country. Using primary data and intelligence, UANI experts identify and publish a list of 10 individuals and entities for the United States (U.S.), United Kingdom (UK), European Union (EU), and other Western allies to target with sanctions. Many of these persons and organizations fly below the radar of public scrutiny. UANI aims to increase awareness of their roles.

Last week, the arrest and interrogation of Makram Rabah, a history lecturer at the American University of Beirut and an outspoken critic of Hezbollah, put the focus on one of Hezbollah's primary tools of handling opposition voices to its policies: silencing them.

It’s no secret that the Islamic Republic of Iran’s support is critical in facilitating the activities of Hezbollah, one of its most powerful proxies.

Earlier this month, the FBI in Miami issued a most-wanted notice for an Iranian intelligence officer, Majid Farahani, tasked with arranging the assassination of former USG officials involved in the 2020 decision to kill IRGC-Quds Force commander Qassem Soleimani.  One of the intriguing facets about this incident is that Farahani, who remains at-large, “travels frequently to Venezuela.”