Oct. 7 (UPI) — The United States on Monday sanctioned four people and 11 organizations accused of funding Hamas, as the Biden administration targets sham charity initiatives that bulge the militia’s coffers on the one-year mark of the Iran-backed group’s brutal surprise attack on Israel.
The punitive means announced by the U.S. Treasury is the eighth tranche of sanctions the Biden administration has leveled at Hamas’ financial support networks since its Oct. 7, 2023, attack on Israel that killed 1,200 Israelis and triggered the ongoing war in the Middle East.
“As we mark one year since Hamas’s brutal terrorist attack, Treasury will continue relentlessly degrading the ability of Hamas and other destabilizing Iranian proxies to finance their operations and carry out additional violent acts,” Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said in a statement.
“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.”
According to the Treasury, Hamas has exploited the suffering of Palestinians in Gaza to solicit funds through sham and front charities that are advertised as seeking to help those in need in the Palestinian enclave, raking in as much as $10 million a month as of early this year to fund its destabilizing activities.
On Monday, the Treasury hit 56-year-old Yemeni national Hamid Abdullah Hussein al Ahmar, who officials said is one of the most prominent international supporters of Hamas.
Treasury described al Ahmar as a key member of Hamas’ investment portfolio that peaked at more than $500 million worth of assets, enabling the militia’s leaders to live in luxury abroad.
He was designated for his role as chairman of the Al-Quds International Foundation, a Lebanon-based Hamas charity that the United States had blacklisted in October 2012 for being a front organization funding the militia.
Nine companies located in Yemen, Czechia, Lebanon and Turkey were also sanctioned Monday for being owned or controlled by al Ahmar.
Mohammad Hannoun, 62, an Italy-based Hamas member, and his Charity Association of Solidarity with the Palestinian People, were also sanctioned.
Treasury called Hannoun’s charity a sham that funds Hamas’ military wing. It said Hannoun had sent money since at least 2018 to Hamas-controlled organizations and had solicited and sent at least $4 million to the militia over a 10-year period.
Others sanctioned included Majed al-Zeer, a German-based senior Hamas representative in his early 60s, and Adel Doughman, also in his early 60s, who is in charge of Hamas activity in Austria and is one of the group’s most prominent representatives in Europe.
The other institution hit with punitive measures Monday was the unlicensed Al-Intaj Bank, which the U.S. Treasury said Hamas uses to fund its operations and evade sanctions.
“These individuals and entities are among the most prominent supporters of Hamas and seek to manipulate the suffering of innocent Palestinian civilians for their malign objectives,” State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said in a statement. “They play critical roles in providing funds for Hamas terrorist activities, often under the guise of charitable work.”
Miller added that the sanctions — which generally freeze all U.S.-based assets of those designated while barring U.S. persons from doing business with them — expose the sham charities, whose actions make it more difficult for legitimate charities to aid Palestinians.
“We will continue to disrupt the ability of terrorist financiers to abuse the non-profit sector,” he said.