NEW YORK (CN) A man accused of providing satellite television services to the Lebanon-based Hizballah pled guilty on December 30th in Manhattan federal court.
Saleh Elahwal, 55, of Matawan, New Jersey admitted he was aware of the designation of Hizballah ("Party of God") as a Foreign Terrorist Organization when he and his Brooklyn, NY company, HDTV Limited, agreed to broadcast Hizballah's television station in exchange for thousands of dollars.
According to the government, the station, Al Manar, which means "the beacon", is used to cultivate support, raise money and recruit volunteers for Hizballah, which seeks "the establishment of a fundamentalist Islamic state and the destruction of the State of Israel."
Hizballah was designated a Federal Terrorist Organization by the State Department in 1997 and a Specially Designated Global Terrorist in 2001.
Elahwal's co-defendant, Javed Iqbal, pled guilty to providing material support to Hizballah on December 23rd.
Elahwal faces a maximum penalty of 15 years in prison when he is sentenced in February.
Subscribe to Closing Arguments
Sign up for new weekly newsletter Closing Arguments to get the latest about ongoing trials, major litigation and hot cases and rulings in courthouses around the U.S. and the world.