BEIRUT (AP) — The leader of the Hezbollah militant group says he is "proud" of U.S. sanctions targeting three members of the group.

Speaking before a graduation event in southern Beirut Saturday, Sheikh Hassan Nasrallah says such sanctions do not make the slightest difference to the group.

The U.S. Treasury Department slapped sanctions last week on three Hezbollah members, including senior figure Mustafa Badr al Din, and a Lebanese businessman for their suspected militant activities in support of Syrian President Bashar Assad.

The action freezes the U.S. assets of all four and prevents Americans from engaging in transactions with them.

"This does not make a slightest difference to our brothers," Nasrallah said. He said Hezbollah members did not have money in international banks or otherwise.