According to a report by the German news magazine ‘Der Spiegel’, Hezbollah is financing some of its activities against Israel through trading in illegal drugs. German customs authorities and police arrested two Lebanese men last year whose relatives were suspected of smuggling millions of dollars, acquired through the cocaine trade in Europe, to Beirut via Frankfurt. ‘Der Spiegel’ reports that seized banknotes had contained remains of cocaine as well as the fingerprints of a Dutch drug dealer known as Karlos and known to European law enforcement agencies.
The two detained suspects engaged in drug trading for an extended period of time and sent funds to Lebanese relatives directly connected to top Hezbollah officials, including leader Hassan Nasrallah.
German officials suspect that the two detainees have been trained at a Hezbollah training camp. The suspects' relatives denied the allegations.
Meanwhile, Hezbollah finalized a reconciliation agreement with Druze leader Walid Jumblatt to defuse the tensions between the two Lebanese political groups that led to deadly clashes in May 2008. Both sides emphasized their commitment to national unity in speeches broadcast on Hezbollah's TV ‘al-Manar’. Reading a speech on behalf of Nasrallah, the group’s member of parliament Mohammad Raad praised Jumblatt's courage and said the partnership was of "strategic interest" and that the two parties would "remain united on different issues, against the enemy [Israel] that threatens us."
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