Hezbollah has received $200 million from Iran to help Lebanese displaced by this year’s war with Israel, according to two people with direct knowledge of the transfer. If confirmed, the payment would represent the first significant aid from Hezbollah to supporters who bore much of the impact of the conflict.
The United States disputed the account. State Department spokesperson Tommy Pigott said the money “is not there” and accused Hezbollah of “trying to save face with fake stories about cash influxes from Iran”. A US Treasury spokesperson separately said Iran was “running out of money and ways to move money” and that Tehran “does not have money to fund its campaign of terror”.
The two sources said Hezbollah received the money last month despite tightening US economic pressure on Iran and growing difficulties in transferring funds to its Lebanese ally. Intermediaries involved in moving the money charged a 20 per cent fee because of the risks associated with dealing with Hezbollah, one source said, describing the charge as four times the normal rate.
A Hezbollah official confirmed that an amount had been secured and said a distribution plan would be announced in the coming days, but did not disclose the source of the funds. Iran’s foreign ministry, Iran’s permanent mission in Geneva and the Lebanese government did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Hezbollah intends to use the funds to provide an initial payment of $3,000 to each family, according to the sources. Priority would go to families whose villages have been destroyed or remain inaccessible because of Israeli occupation. One source estimated that about 50,000 families would qualify for priority assistance.
The war has displaced hundreds of thousands of people from the Shi’ite Muslim community that forms Hezbollah’s support base after the group entered the regional conflict in support of Iran on March 2. Hezbollah, an armed group founded by Iran’s Revolutionary Guards in 1982, has suffered major losses in two wars with Israel since 2024. Washington designates it as a terrorist group.
Iran has provided financial support to Hezbollah for years despite US sanctions. The US Treasury Department said Iran transferred $1 billion to the group during the first 10 months of 2025. Tehran has not acknowledged financing Hezbollah, and its support for regional groups has previously fuelled domestic criticism of Iran’s clerical leadership.
Iran had promised Hezbollah additional funding after Tehran reached an interim agreement with Washington in June that allowed Iran to sell oil, Reuters reported at the time. The agreement collapsed in July. Washington subsequently intensified economic pressure on Iran through tighter sanctions and a naval blockade intended to prevent Iranian oil exports.
Hezbollah leader Naim Qassem said last month that the group would soon contribute to a project to house thousands of people displaced by the war, using “available resources and donations”. The group’s ability to finance local services and post-war assistance has previously helped maintain its support. After the 2006 war with Israel, Hezbollah rapidly distributed cash payments and helped rebuild Beirut’s southern suburbs.
This time, reconstruction has been limited. Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam said last month that reconstruction costs from the two wars since 2024 could exceed $27 billion. Israeli attacks in Lebanon have killed more than 4,300 people since March 2, according to Lebanon’s health ministry, which does not distinguish between combatants and civilians. Reuters reported on May 4 that several thousand Hezbollah fighters had been killed in the war.
