US hits Hamas funding network with sanctions on attack anniversary

The Treasury Department announced Monday, the anniversary of Hamas’s Oct. 7 attack on Israel, it would be sanctioning part of the Palestinian militant group’s funding network.

The Treasury said its Office of Foreign Assets Control had designated three individuals, “one sham charity” and one Hamas-controlled financial institution in Gaza. A long-standing Hamas supporter and nine of his businesses were also identified.

“These actors play critical roles in external fundraising for Hamas, often under the guise of charitable work, that finance the group’s terrorist activities,” the department said in a release.

The sanctions come on the anniversary of Hamas invading Israel in a surprise attack that killed 1,200 people and resulted in more than 200 hostages being taken. Israel has vowed to destroy the group, and more than 40,000 civilians in Gaza have been killed in the ensuing war, the Gaza Health Ministry reports.

Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said her department will continue to “relentlessly” degrade Hamas and other Iranian proxy groups’ ability to “finance their operations and carry out additional violent acts.”

“The Treasury Department will use all available tools at our disposal to hold Hamas and its enablers accountable, including those who seek to exploit the situation to secure additional sources of revenue,” Yellen said in a statement.

The department said its sanctions Monday target the abuse of the nonprofit organization sector and those who use that sector through fake charities to generate revenue. The department said that as of early 2024, Hamas may have raised $10 million a month through global donations that falsely claim to be raising money for civilians in Gaza.

Most of the money was raised and donated in Europe. One charity known to be associated with Hamas is Charity Association of Solidarity with the Palestinian People.

The sanctions help preserve the integrity of and access to other nonprofits and humanitarian organizations looking to help those affected by the ongoing conflict.

The sanctions target Hamid Abdullah Hussein al Ahmar, a Yemeni national living in Turkey and “one of the most prominent international supporters of Hamas.” He and his nine entities are being sanctioned for materially assisting, sponsoring or providing support for or goods and services to Hamas, the department said.

Monday’s sanctions are the eighth time the U.S. has targeted Hamas’s financial system since last year’s attack. The department said it continues to work closely with the United Kingdom and Australia to target Hamas’s financial facilitators, and the U.S. remains committed to working with its allies to counter the ongoing threats in the region.