On Monday, The Washington Free Beacon reported that a group claiming to be working against war crimes that happens to have filed complaints against over one thousand Israeli soldiers has ties to Hezbollah.
The article reports:
An obscure Belgian nonprofit that has single-handedly filed more than 1,000 complaints against Israeli soldiers at the International Criminal Court (ICC) bills itself as a neutral legal entity crusading against “war crimes and human rights violations perpetrated by the Israeli state.” According to a new watchdog report, though, one of its co-founders has openly identified himself as a former Hezbollah terrorist, and the organization itself is entrenched within Hezbollah’s financing network across multiple continents.
Lebanese-Belgian activist Dyab Abou Jahjah, who co-founded the Hind Rajab Foundation (HRF) in late 2024, described himself in a 2003 New York Times profile as a “very proud” former Hezbollah member. He was arrested by Belgian authorities in 2002 for inciting Arab riots in Antwerp, and has repeatedly pledged his allegiance to Hezbollah and Hamas on social media. One of Europe’s leading anti-Israel activists, Abou Jahjah allegedly remains “linked to organizations associated with U.S.-designated terrorist groups” like Hezbollah and the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, the report states.
The HRF does not publicly disclose its funding structure, but the watchdog report identifies it as “part of Hezbollah’s extensive business networks tied to families and local diaspora connections across Europe, Latin America, and Africa.” These networks, the report states, “are known to support front companies, informal trade, and layered laundering operations” through “used car exports, counterfeit goods, and commodity trades, facilitated through relatives or friendly businessmen.”
The article concludes:
An HRF spokesman denied any affiliations with Hezbollah and described the watchdog report as “false, defamatory, and politically motivated.”
“We have no ties—financial, operational, or organizational—to Hezbollah, Hamas, or any other group designated as a terrorist organization,” the organization said. “HRF operates transparently under Belgian and EU law, and is entirely funded by small public donations.”
The sole specific piece of information the HRF spokesman disputed in an email exchange with the Free Beacon was the report’s characterization of Hassoun as “Lebanese-Belgian,” stating that “both parents of Mr Hassoun Morrocan-Belgians [sic].” Though the spokesman said the report had misrepresented Hassoun’s origins, both Israeli news outlet Ynet and the Anti-Defamation League have also described Hassoun as Lebanese-Belgian.
The Trump administration may disagree with the spokesman’s claims. A second senior U.S. official tracking the matter told the Free Beacon the watchdog group’s findings “are another example of the dangerous precedent being set by the ICC. We’ve been clear that the United States will actively oppose actions that threaten our national interests and infringe on our sovereignty and that of our allies.”
Keep in mind that the Islamic concept of taqiyya allows Muslims to lie to non-Muslims if the purpose of the lie is to advance the cause of Islam. Also remember that the International Criminal Court (ICC) has never supported the State of Israel.
