The Justice Department is forming a team of prosecutors to investigate drug trafficking and money laundering linked to the Iranian-backed Hezbollah terror group, Attorney General Jeff Sessions said Thursday. The move follows reports that Obama administration officials thwarted drug prosecutions related to Hezbollah for fear of jeopardizing a nuclear deal with Iran.
President Donald Trump and congressional Republicans have been relentless in pressuring Sessions to take a fresh look at Obama-era dealings, in an effort that Democrats contend is aimed at steering attention away from investigations into Trump campaign ties to Russian election meddling.
The new team’s first task will be to examine evidence from the Obama-era Drug Enforcement Administration program known as Project Cassandra. Sessions announced a review in December, after Politico reported that the program had been targeting the Hezbollah’s trafficking of cocaine into the U.S. and abroad but was stymied by Obama officials.
The Obama administration at the time was eager to improve relations with Iran and stall its nuclear weapons program.
The U.S. considers Hezbollah to be a terrorist group and an Iranian proxy.
Prosecutors who specialize in terrorism, narcotics trafficking and organized crime, led by the acting head of the Justice Department’s criminal division, will bring prosecutions designed to restrict the flow of money to terrorist groups, Sessions said. He said he wanted to be sure Project Cassandra and other investigations have adequate resources.
“The Justice Department will leave no stone unturned in order to eliminate threats to our citizens from terrorist organizations and to stem the tide of the devastating drug crisis,” Sessions said.
(AP)
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2 Responses
yes put them behind bars
“The Obama administration at the time was eager to improve relations with Iran and stall its nuclear weapons program.”
Wow! One glaring inaccuracy in this statement. “Stall” is not true. Obama y”sh never wanted to stall Iran’s nuclear program. He wanted to support it and fund it. His intentions were treasonous. I hope the investigation finds the evidence for this anti-American activity. May he go down in history as the most rebellious and anti-patriotic president ever voted into office. I wish that every single American who voted for this crook is burdened with enough guilt to make sure to never vote for any of his supporters, and to be much more wary of any candidate claiming to be from the Democratic Party.